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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

USTR 2005 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers
31-Mar-2005 USTR
Office of the US Trade Representative has released its 2005 report on country-by-country barriers to US global trade interests.
Losing out in Asia: The perils of principle
28-Mar-2005 Newsweek
Europe is on the high road to big business losses. As the US races to make trade deals with nations across the world, Europe has held back, on lofty principle. That, in any event, is the message European businesses in Singapore will deliver to EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson when he arrives in the city-state in April.
Bush’s pointsman has his job cut out
21-Mar-2005
After weeks of uncertainty, President George W Bush has nominated as US Trade Representative Rob Portman, a Republican Congressman from Ohio, better known for his loyalty to the President than for any experience in international trade negotiations.
Bush taps congressman as US Trade Representative
17-Mar-2005 LA Times
Faced with tough political battles over a controversial trade pact with Central America and rising imports from China, President Bush announced today that he had enlisted a congressional insider and loyal supporter to be his new trade chief.
Bush administration submits annual trade report to Congress
2-Mar-2005 USTR
The Bush Administration today submitted to Congress the 2005 Trade Policy Agenda and the 2004 Annual Report of the President on the Trade Agreements Program.
An FTA with the US, what are we really in for?
1-Mar-2005
Regional and bilateral trade agreements have been around since the 1950’s. In the last decade however, there has been an increasing spurt of trade pacts being signed all over the world that pose challenges to the multilateral trading system.
Gloomy trade outlook
24-Feb-2005 UPI
Economic considerations are well down the list of reasons why bilateral trade agreements get negotiated
We must lead the way on free trade
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.
Peter Mandelson speech on ’Strengthening the Lisbon Strategy’
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."
WTO wrong to abandon core values
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.

    Links

  • #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
  • 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 trade regimes for countries pursuing industrial policies for development.
  • Alianza Social Continental
    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
  • 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 emerging powers...
  • 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, launched in October 2016.
  • 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 struggle and mutual support called Peoples’ Global Action against "Free" Trade and the World Trade Organisation (PGA).
  • 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
  • Third World Network
    TWN’s website is a good source of information and analysis about what’s happening within the multilateral trade system (WTO, UNCTAD, G77, etc).
  • WorldTradeLaw.net
    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.