World Trade Organization: Seattle Ministerial: Outcomes and Lessons Learned PDF Download

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Book Description
WTO member countries failed to meet their goal of launching a new round of multilateral trade negotiations at their biennial ministerial conference last December in Seattle. The conference was suspended without initiating a new round or issuing a ministerial declaration. No one factor, but a combination of circumstances, led to the impasse. However, two themes emerged. First, there was lack of agreement on many issues both among major trading partners and between developed and many developing countries on the eve of the ministerial conference. Disagreement centered on the scope of the round and stemmed from the sensitivity and complexity of the issues being addressed. Second, the Seattle negotiation process had inherent difficulties. For example, the document used as the basis for negotiations was a poor starting point for reaching consensus. It was a lengthy amalgamation of countries' divergent positions rather than a text reflecting members' common objectives. In addition, the negotiating process was hampered by the newness of the WTO leadership team. Further, the process was made difficult by the challenge of accommodating the needs and interests of a large and increasingly diverse WTO membership.