G4 Countries Attempt to Revive Global Trade Talks

Members of the Group of 4 (G4) held global trade talks in Potsdam, Germany in an attempt to make one final push to revive the Doha Round of Talks. US Trade Representative Susan Schwab was joined by trade officials from the European Union (EU), Brazil, and India. Pascal Lamy, head of the World Trade Organization (WTO), reiterated his call for a global trade agreement, otherwise the Doha Round will be stalled again for several years.

World leaders doubted that the G4 meeting will produce a favorable global trade deal, but they pointed out that any development will be welcome news to developing countries. Many concerned parties believed that the Doha Round was not successful in meeting its target of alleviating poverty among developing nations. Prior to the event, the G20 countries, led by Brazil and India, held a separate meeting last June 11 in Geneva, Switzerland. The aim of the meeting was to get a consensus among the members of the group on whether or not they were in favor of an agreement.

As expected, the meeting ended with representatives of the four countries pointing fingers at each other for the failure of the talks. Brazil and India lashed at the US and the EU, saying there was a need for both countries to change their attitudes in order for future deals to succeed. On the other hand, the United States and the European Union countered by saying that Brazil and India were not open to the influx of Western products to their respective local markets.

Since its inception in 2001, the Doha Round of Talks failed to produce a major development as some members could not settle their differences. Succeeding global trade talks in December 2005 produced a similar outcome. Now, with the United States set to lose its power to negotiate global trade deals on July 1, things are not looking good for the Doha Development Agenda.