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  1. Negotiations

:: Across the board ::


This section contains news and analysis of sweeping developments that affect the overall push and pull towards FTAs and bilateral investment treaties. This means major trends relating to bilateralism, often with global consequences, and other cross-cutting issues. New developments arising from US politics, the WTO or South-South alliance-building, for instance, are often reported here as they tend to have systemic impacts.

last update: May 2012

US needs new trade policy, but won't retreat: Kirk
21-Mar-2009    
he United States will not retreat from the global marketplace but must address the concerns of American workers who believe that trade hurts them, President Barack Obama's chief trade negotiator said at his swearing in ceremony on Friday.
Will The SPP Rise Again?
17-Mar-2009     Border Fire Report
The global elite have not abandoned their vision for a North American Union and the SPP will rise again in one form or another.
TWN preliminary report on FTA/WTO and financial crisis
16-Mar-2009    
A new TWN report finds that North-South free trade agreements, bilateral investment treaties and World Trade Organization commitments often contain a number of provisions that can increase the likelihood of a financial crisis and make it more difficult to take the necessary measures to deal with one once it occurs.
US lawmaker details obstacles to free trade deals
12-Mar-2009     Reuters
Panama, Colombia and South Korea need to resolve a number of outstanding concerns before Congress will approve free trade pacts with each of those countries, a US lawmaker said on Wednesday.
Seoul seeks ‘concrete measures‘ on free trade
12-Mar-2009     FT
South Korea is pushing for the G20 countries to support a moratorium on new import tariffs at next month's meeting, according to President Lee Myung-bak.
Free Trade: Passing The Baton to Obama
10-Mar-2009    
When it comes to further advancing free trade initiatives, it really makes no difference which party controls, congress or the presidency.
Developing countries turn to South-South trade
8-Feb-2009     Reuters
Developing countries hoping to compensate for slumping demand in rich countries and falling commodity prices are looking at ways to bolster one of the most dynamic parts of their economies -- South-South trade.
The end of free trade?
5-Feb-2009     Socialist Worker
The US will find it harder and harder to maintain neoliberalism abroad and some sort of financial state capitalism at home. As unemployment grows, it will also become more difficult to use access to the US market as leverage to incorporate client states abroad into the fold of US imperialism. We are at a major turning point. Like most of neoliberal ideology, free trade has lost its allure. However, what will replace it isn't entirely clear. There are many possibilities, and they all depend on the level of class struggle. In the US, the most crucial question is whether workers get pulled into a nationalist, protectionist "Buy American" campaign--or whether they take an internationalist approach in concert with workers in other countries
'Buy American' stimulus plan riles trade partners
30-Jan-2009     AFP
A new "Buy American" push in President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan is sparking protests about protectionism from US trading partners.
Time to rethink free trade agreements with the United States
20-Jan-2009     Americas Program
The path to "free trade"--as defined by George Bush and his predecessors--is currently at a crossroads. The Obama presidency, the growing number of developing countries that oppose NAFTA-like trade agreements, and the global economic crisis are interrelated factors that provide an opportunity to rethink this model and demand conditions favoring equitable development.

Referenced sites

21st Century Trade Agreements: Implications for Long-Run Development Policy

A publication of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future. The paper examines the policy space available under various free t...

#A18DoA - Global day of action to defeat free trade and investment treaties

Website for the global day of action to defeat free trade and investment treaties #A18DoA

Alianza Social Continental

La Alianza Social Continental es un foro de organizaciones y movimientos sociales progresistas de las Américas, creado para intercambiar información, definir...

ICC

International Chamber of Commerce

Movimientos.org

A multilingual (English, Spanish, Portuguese) website focusing on social movements and their campaigns, including those against bilateral and regional FTAs.

Pambazuka

In this week's edition of the Emerging Powers News Round-Up, read a comprehensive list of news stories and opinion pieces related to China, India and other e...

People over profit

People Over Profit is a campaign network that unites peoples movements and NGOs across the globe to stop free trade agreements (FTAs) and corporate plunder, ...

Peoples Global Action

In February 1998, movements from all continents met in Geneva to launch a worldwide coordination of resistances to the global market, a new alliance of strug...

Regional/Multilateral Integration Agreements

Selected research papers on regional trade agreements, from internationaleconomics.net

SOMO

SOMO links the negotiations and rules on international trade and investment with the actual conduct of corporations within these rules and agreements.

South Centre

An intergovernmental organisation of developing countries

Stop fast track!

10 days to stop fast track in the United States: Jan 22 - 31 2014