Experts question whether Arabs, S. Americans can deliver alternative to US domination
Khaleej Times, Dubai
Experts question whether Arabs, S. Americans can deliver alternative to US domination
(AP)
13 May 2005
BRASILIA, Brazil - South American and Arab leaders showed the United States this week that they can be a force to be reckoned with - at least when it comes to talking tough.
But whether they will be able to fulfill their pledges to harness the power of free trade for the world’s poor hinges on their ability to look beyond their domestic agendas and resist potential American efforts to lure them away with lucrative bilateral trade deals.
The outlook, experts say, isn’t promising.
In the declaration approved at the first Summit of South American-Arab Countries, politics overshadowed economics as the officials lashed out at Israel and reaffirmed the right of peoples to resist foreign occupation.
But when only seven of the 22 invited Arab leaders showed up in the Brazilian capital - notably absent were the leaders of US allies Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia - there was much speculation that the Americans had pressured them to stay away.
“The no-show on the part of the Arab political heavyweights is very likely a reflection that they are not as interested as the South Americans are in opening this door for trade,” said Hani Shukrallah, editor-in-chief of the influential Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram Weekly. “They are much more interested in their relations with the US and the European Union.”
Participants in the summit brushed aside the absence of those leaders, saying the meeting was about securing political capital for the world’s poor, not posturing. But experts say that for the Arabs, much of that capital may be earmarked for domestic consumption rather than for the “South-South” alliances some South American leaders envision.
The focus in the “Declaration of Brasilia” on the Palestinian issue and on terrorism was a priority for Arab nations already under pressure from the United States to embrace democracy. But those nations have little in the way of exports to boost the paltry trade with their South American summit partners.
“This summit is not going to change much for Egypt, for example, on the economic side, mainly because it is the biggest recipient of US aid,” said Princeton University political analyst Amany Jamal. “What it will do is try to create some aura of legitimacy and credibility to reinvigorate the government’s discourse with the people.”
If the Arab focus was on politics, South America’s - and in particular summit host Brazil’s - was on boosting trade and maximizing clout on the global economic arena.
The six-member Gulf Cooperation Council signed an agreement with the four-member Mercosur trade bloc to begin negotiations on a free-trade zone that would give South America access to a lucrative import-dependent market.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, whose country is a member of Mercosur, is deeply committed to forcing wealthy countries to cut agricultural subsidies and leveling the economic playing field for the developing world.
He has largely turned his back on the proposed 34-nation Free Trade Area of the Americas, focusing instead on regional blocs like Mercosur.
Brazil has also been a pivotal player in the ongoing World Trade Organization talks, where negotiators are trying to lay the framework for an accord at a year-end summit in Hong Kong. That deal, if concluded, could lead to a binding trade liberalization treaty by the end of next year.
While Arab countries wield little commercial clout in the 148-member WTO, their support could be key for Brazil, an influential player in the organization.
“Brazil has clearly been a leader in WTO talks,” said Gary Hufbauer, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Institute for International Economics.
“The underlying message about the language of support is that these countries will answer the telephone and be more sympathetic to the Brazilian lead in the Hong Kong talks,” he said. “Brazil is adding to its coalition.”
That may be the best that Brazil and the other summit participants can hope for in terms of their bid to expand their sphere of influence as a counter-force to Western-dominated international institutions such as the International Monetary Fund.
“In terms of some radical reform of the IMF, this movement has no effective clout,” Hufbauer said.
