Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-12-13-Speech-3-156"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20001213.6.3-156"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spoken text |
"Mr President, there seem to be many issues which this summit should address on its agenda, and one that I would like to see there is follow-up to the disappointing breakdown of the climate change talks in The Hague and how to get the US to take its responsibilities more seriously. But the area that I want to focus on is world trade, the whole idea of a new trade round one year after Seattle. This would seem an opportune time to take stock. I think it is clear that before any new round is considered we need to address the perception of many developing countries that nothing has changed since Seattle in spite of the many promises that were made at the time.
I know the Commission is now talking about reviving elements of its position for a new round, making it more flexible, and I look forward to knowing what that really means in practice. I also know and welcome the Everything but Arms Initiative and would urge the Commission to use the occasion of the summit to press the US again to join in with this initiative.
But we need to go further in building confidence with poorer countries. Research from the development agency OXFAM has shown that when they have discussed what has changed since Seattle with the developing country delegations, the perceptions are that nothing has changed at all. Bangladesh, for example, says and I quote: "Sufficient and sustained efforts have not been made by the developed countries to build our confidence in the WTO.” Lesotho has said: "What has the WTO market liberalisation brought to Lesotho?" There are very many quotes that I hear from developing country delegations, all of which are saying that nothing much has happened. I will conclude with the Dominican Republic, which says: "The WTO was supposed to have been an impartial referee of common rules where countries could learn to play the game. It has not turned out that way. The rules are biased against the weak and nothing has changed since Seattle." The forthcoming summit is the crucial opportunity to address those issues, to change the rules, and to make world trade work for the poor."@en1
|
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples