To one’s (yet another) disappointment on the Doha round talks, the Fantastic 4 (the U.S., the EU, Brazil, and India) failed to hammer out a framework deal in Potsdam, Germany yesterday. Such a deal was badly needed to complete the negotiation by the end of this year. It seems that a trade deal would be hard to be sold in the U.S. in an election year. See Financial Times, World trade talks collapse in acrimony, June 21, 2007. In a damage control mode, the WTO quickly downplayed this incidence. See Statement from DG Lamy concerning Potsdam outcome, June 21, 2007. Pascal Lamy said that:
G4 Members (US, EU, Brazil and India) have been meeting in Potsdam to try to bridge gaps in their negotiating positions. Prior convergence among these Members would have been helpful to pave the way towards multilateral convergence. But helpful does not mean indispensable. This negotiation is an endeavour among the 150 Members of the WTO.
As a trade scholar, what I am afraid is that this kind of news might be no more shocking to people. Is the global trading community slipping into the status of “learned helplessness”?
