ISDS Case Map
bilateralism & multilateralism
how bilateral, multilateral, regional, unilateral and plurilateral approaches relate (e.g. FTAs vis-à-vis WTO)
IN the end Doha died not with a bang but a whimper, with media coverage of its collapse being squeezed off the front pages by the escalating crisis in the Middle East.
The Doha round of world trade talks may have collapsed in Geneva last week -- denying the world's developing countries their promised access to global markets -- but leading trade expert Jagdish Bhagwati remains optimistic about the cause of multilateral trade liberalisation.
Now that the global trade talks under the World Trade Organization have collapsed, Japan will be forced to walk down what looks like a rocky road to seek bilateral free trade agreements, marking a departure from its trade policy based on both multilateral and bilateral approaches.
Two weeks ago, members of the World Trade Organization agreed on rules that would make it easier to track bilateral and regional trade deals. Negotiators were concerned that the proliferation of such deals would detract from efforts, already faltering, to reach a global trade pact.
India is considering economic cooperation agreements with the European Union and Japan to boost trade, Commerce Minister Kamal Nath said on Tuesday, a day after global free trade talks collapsed.
You don't have to declare multilateralism dead, just because this round of talks is over, but there are three particular, potential consequences of the collapse in the talks.
Many US Congress Members are interested in how FTAs might address SPS
matters. These Members are concerned that as trade agreements lower agricultural
tariffs, more countries may turn to SPS measures to protect their farmers from import competition.
The failure to reach agreement on the Doha round suggests the era of multilateral trade agreements is coming to an end.
The World Trade Organisation chief Pascal Lamy is upbeat about global trade talks, with the U.S. having indicated that it will go further to cut trade distorting farm subsidies. He is also expecting better offers from all the other major players in the round, including the European Union and the Group of 20 that includes India, Brazil and China, during the mini-ministerial conference next week in Geneva.
Susan Schwab began work last week as US Trade Representative (USTR) at a difficult time for free trade.
