In a draft report published on 3 April, the Bruegel think-tank sets out its recommendations for the EU to work to preserve the credibility of the World Trade Organization (WTO), which has been badly damaged by the mediocre results of its 14th Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé (Cameroon) (see EUROPE 13839/17).
As Ignacio García Bercero, senior researcher, points out, the conference failed to reach a consensus on three of the major points on the agenda: in-depth reform of the institution, extension of the moratorium on the application of customs duties to e-commerce and the incorporation into the WTO of an agreement on Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD).
Faced with criticism and scepticism about the organisation, expressed in particular by Jamieson Greer, the US Trade Representative, Mr García Bercero questioned what path the EU should take.
In the end, he advocated mutual reinforcement between the “network” of free trade agreements and the one of alliances that the EU has built up in support of WTO reform.
In his view, this strategy should take the form of support for the embedding into the WTO of the e-commerce and investment facilitation agreements, “both of which respond to EU interests in supporting digital trade and investment in developing countries”.
The EU should also discuss with a large group of countries, including Brazil, Indonesia and South Africa, how to strengthen international disciplines on industrial and agricultural subsidies.
Ignacio García Bercero insists as well on enhanced dialogue between the EU and India on WTO reform, taking advantage of their recently negotiated free trade agreement (see EUROPE 13795/1).
To see the publication: https://aeur.eu/f/lgq (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)