- Negotiations
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
24-Feb-2005
UPI
Economic considerations are well down the list of reasons why bilateral trade agreements get negotiated
22-Feb-2005
Free trade is one of the critical components of U.S. efforts to develop enduring, stabilizing influences in the Middle East, South Asia and Africa — key regions for our work to thwart the rise of terrorism and illiberal government.
16-Feb-2005
European Commission
"The hoped-for success of Doha should be complemented by bilateral or regional initiatives, such as Regional Trade Agreements with Mercosur and the Gulf Cooperation Council, which allow the pursuit of a wider agenda."
15-Feb-2005
Free trade agreements are popping up everywhere. In its first term the Bush administration pushed four through Congress and started another three. China is negotiating FTAs with Chile and New Zealand. And Australia has negotiated three with Washington, Singapore and Thailand, and is in the process of dealing with Beijing. Not everyone thinks they are good.
3-Feb-2005
IISD
This paper aims to set out the issues of importance in addressing the links between sustainable development and the rush to regionalism (FTAs).
18-Jan-2005
Far from being a stepping stone to freer trade, the NAFTA and other regional and bilateral trade deals have created a conflicting web of preferential arrangements that may be impeding rather than spurring trade, the authors of a report commissioned by the World Trade Organization have concluded.
18-Jan-2005
Trade Minister Mark Vaile today defended Australia’s free trade deals with foreign countries after a new World Trade Organisation (WTO) report said such agreements could be discriminatory.
18-Jan-2005
FT
The World Trade Organisation is being undermined by the intransigence and short-sightedness of its member countries, according to the report of a high-level commission released on Monday.
16-Jan-2005
Now that Trade Representative Robert Zoellick is moving to the State Department as Condoleezza Rice’s deputy, U.S. trade policy may see a shift from small bilateral pacts back to big, sweeping multilateral trade agreements.
13-Jan-2005
Although not part of the new right’s militarist and neo-conservative camps, Zoellick’s personal arrogance, his unilateralism, and his loyalty to Bush and the Republican Party’s new radical elite make him a perfect fit for Bush’s new foreign policy team.
Links
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Website for the global day of action to defeat free trade and investment treaties #A18DoA
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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 trade regimes for countries pursuing industrial policies for development.
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La Alianza Social Continental es un foro de organizaciones y movimientos sociales progresistas de las Américas, creado para intercambiar información, definir estrategias y promover acciones conjuntas, todo ello encaminado a la búsqueda de un modelo de desarrollo alternativo y democrático, que beneficie a nuestros pueblos
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International Chamber of Commerce
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A multilingual (English, Spanish, Portuguese) website focusing on social movements and their campaigns, including those against bilateral and regional FTAs.
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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 emerging powers...
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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, launched in October 2016.
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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 struggle and mutual support called Peoples’ Global Action against "Free" Trade and the World Trade Organisation (PGA).
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Selected research papers on regional trade agreements, from internationaleconomics.net
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SOMO links the negotiations and rules on international trade and investment with the actual conduct of corporations within these rules and agreements.
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An intergovernmental organisation of developing countries
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10 days to stop fast track in the United States: Jan 22 - 31 2014
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TWN’s website is a good source of information and analysis about what’s happening within the multilateral trade system (WTO, UNCTAD, G77, etc).
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WorldTradeLaw.net offers a free library of current trade news and resources; a database of dispute settlement tables and statistics; and a user-friendly search tool for legal texts, and other documents.
