Washington DC – In light of recent developments in the Doha Round of World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations, the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) today released the following statement:
“While the World Trade Organization (WTO) performed a major service for the global economy by preventing backsliding during the deepest economic recession in modern times, attempts to further expand trade have been stalled for nearly a decade. Last week, several key delegations, particularly from emerging economic powers, dug in even deeper in positions that will prevent the conclusion of a deal.
“The Doha Round was initiated shortly after 9/11, amid hope that new trade flows could further stimulate worldwide economic growth. Economic summits of heads of state have since that time repeatedly called for making this giant multilateral trade negotiation a success. At the beginning of this year there was a new sense of optimism among negotiators in Geneva. That sense of sense of optimism is now quickly fading away.
“Unless there is personal engagement from heads of state in capitals around the world, it is unlikely that the Round will progress toward the successful and ambitious conclusion the U.S. business community advocates and which would kick-start the global economy.
“After nearly a decade of talks, it is past time for world leaders to get personally involved and work together to deliver the political will to reach a strong positive result on the tough issues that are stalling the negotiations. If political leaders cannot make progress towards an agreement, alternative approaches to trade liberalization outside of the WTO are likely to accelerate, which have the potential to weaken the multilateral trading system. A continued impasse would also call into question the viability of the Doha Round as it currently stands.”
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About NFTC
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century– The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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