NUSA DUA: The World Trade Organisation (WTO) appealed yesterday for support from Asia-Pacific nations to help clinch a deal on easing global trade constraints at crunch December talks, saying agreement is “clearly within reach”.
Roberto Azevedo urged the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) grouping to throw its weight behind the negotiations so that the WTO can agree a deal in time for its ninth ministerial meeting in early December in Indonesia’s Bali island.
“Now we are in need of support as much as ever,” Azevedo said at a news conference after days of fervent diplomacy, including speaking to foreign and trade ministers at an Apec plenary session to drive home his point.
“We hope that by coming here, I would have given the message to ministers of Apec of where we are and how importantly we need the engagement from capitals and from the ministers themselves.”
Differences over the concessions needed have led to clashes notably between China, the European Union, India and the United States, leading to a gridlock in the so-called Doha Round of global trade talks since 2008.
However, the most deadlocked portions of the Doha agenda have been put aside and countries are focusing talks on areas where agreement is possible, namely trade facilitation, agriculture and development issues.
Azevedo said agreement in these areas at the December meeting in Bali could break the gridlock and allow the WTO to discuss other issues. “We are making progress but not fast enough. We need to be quicker and we need ministers to engage,” he said yesterday. “I’m very positive. What we have before us on the table is doable,” he added.
“I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that we can reach this. We are clearly within reach.”
Although the areas under negotiation are limited, the gains can be enormous, Azevedo said, citing estimates showing that the easing trade constraints could result in savings of up to a trillion dollars worldwide.
US Trade Representative Michael Froman also told reporters in Bali he was hopeful a deal would be reached in December. “I am pleased to announce that there is a hopeful sign this week of our ability to work collectively together to solve problems and make progress in the WTO,” he said. “If we fail, it will be hard to see how we further that agenda.”
Meanwhile, the United States said a tough, year-end deadline for a giant free trade pact in the Asia-Pacific was achievable, after negotiators made “significant progress” on sensitive issues.
US Trade Representative Michael Froman sounded an upbeat tone following negotiations on the Indonesian island of Bali with his counterparts from the 11 other nations involved in the planned Trans-Pacific Partnership. “We spent a great deal of time this week working on TPP. The TPP countries are strongly committed to working to conclude negotiations this year,” Froman told reporters.
US President Barack Obama has said he wants to reach a deal by the end of this year on the TPP, which would account for more than 40 percent of the global economy. The United States has spearheaded the negotiations for the free trade area, describing it as creating “gold standards” for the 21st Century economy by taking into account fast-changing sectors such as intellectual property.
However, there has been resistance from various members within the diverse group to many provisions within the TPP, and analysts have said that a deal matching US ambitions by the end of this year is impossible.
Froman said negotiators had tackled some of those sensitive issues, such as weakening the influence of state owned enterprises, intellectual property and environment regulations.
“We’ve made significant progress this week and we look forward to briefing the TPP leaders on Tuesday about that progress and getting their political level guidance to facilitate the conclusion of negotiations,” he said.
Those leaders are scheduled to hold a meeting on the sidelines of a two-day Apec summit in Bali starting on Monday. The TPP would bring together the economies of the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Chile, Canada, Mexico and Peru.
China, which has not been invited to join the pact, is pursuing a rival free trade deal involving 16 Asia-Pacific nations. The United States has used the TPP as part of its so-called strategic “pivot” to the Asia-Pacific, emphasising the economic benefits for the region if it goes ahead.
US commitment to the region has been under fierce scrutiny after Obama cancelled his trip to Indonesia for the leaders’ summit so he could focus on a political crisis in Washington that has paralysed the government.
Froman and US Secretary of State John Kerry, who is filling in for Obama at Apec, sought to highlight the TPP progress as proof the US remained committed to the region.
“None of what is happening in Washington diminishes one iota our commitment to our partners in Asia, including our efforts for both trade and investment throughout the region,” Kerry said in a press conference alongside Froman.
AFP
