A new outlook for global trade talks

By P. S. Suryanarayana

BANGKOK, FEB. 19. The deliberations of the tenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) had raised the level of ``confidence'' between the bloc of haves (the developed countries) on the one hand, and the have-nots (the developing nations) on the other, in their collective endeavour to start a ``development round'' of global trade talks, according to Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, president of the just-concluded eight-day meeting.

He said the idea was to ``build blocks'' in an edifice of confidence between the two sides and the latest UNCTAD meeting had helped begin that task. Following the latest UNCTAD session, the outlook for a new round of global parleys was now ``a bit more realistic'' than in the wake of the collapse of the recent Seattle conference, Dr. Supachai said. In any case, he was confident that it would be ``a development round'' of trade negotiations, whenever it might be launched.

The UNCTAD Secretary General, Mr. Rubens Ricupero, sought to meet the criticism that there was nothing concrete for the lesser- developed countries (LDCs) either in the latest Bangkok Declaration or in the related Plan of Action. He said that the Plan reflected a ``compromise'' between the developed bloc and the developing countries.

On the political significance of the Bangkok Declaration, the Thailand Foreign Minister, Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, who assessed the ``sense'' of the participants for drafting the document, said that the ``interdependency'' of the two sides across the development divide was fully reflected.

Dr. Supachai indicated that a new window of political opportunity had now been opened for considering the enlargement of the G-7 industrialised bloc to cover more states with stakes in global trade and other economic issues. He pointed out that the IMF chief, Mr. Michel Camdessus, had mooted the idea of a G- 30 forum.

The U.S. took the stand that the latest UNCTAD documents could perhaps have been prepared differently in different quarters. Yet, they accorded centrality to ``development strategy,'' the U.S. delegate noted. This should be seen against the ``potential benefits'' of adhering to ``coherence'' in ``shaping the global economy,'' it was said. The U.S. has taken note of the need for a ``global system in which all can participate and benefit.''

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Section  : International
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