Archive - Oct 2005

President Jacques Chirac of France broke with the rest of the Union and said he was prepared to block world trade talks. Chirac's intervention came as the European Commission was due Friday to make a new offer to break the deadlock on world trade negotiations.

The least developed countries in the WTO have made a request to the TRIPS Council to extend the transitional period for their implementing the TRIPS Agreement for a further 15 years after the present transition period expires at the end of this year.

An impasse became evident on negotiations on the major remaining issue relating to the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health when some key members appeared far apart on a solution, and disagreed even on how the process of consultations is going on, during a meeting of the TRIPS Council on 25 October.

Mr Chirac used the Hampton Court summit to fire a warning shot across the bows of Peter Mandelson, EU trade commissioner, who will today present a new European offer on agriculture to help break the deadlock in the Doha world trade talks.

The statement has been signed by 35 groups from over 30 countries representing development, environment, gender, fair trade and religious groups as well as farmers, trade union related groups and research groups.

EC proposal as regards the benchmarks.

Lower economic output will slow world trade growth in 2005, according to WTO annual publication International Trade Statistics released on 27 October 2005.

The WTO issued the second award of the arbitrator regarding the European Communities' implementation of the waiver granted by the Doha Ministerial Conference in relation to its banana regime

G33 proposal in the agriculture negotiations, on the Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) for use by developing countries to protect against import surges.

Mr Breton is as ardent as any French minister in arguing that the CAP is essential for Europe's future and must not be sacrificed at the altar of the World Trade Organisation.