Case Analysis: Brazil’s Wto Cotton Case: Negotiation Through Litigation
BACKGROUND
In the history of the WTO, it has been unusual for any developing country to win substantial concessions from the dominating EU-US block for increased market access and reduced tariffs. It is much more unusual when these concessions are granted in agricultural products, the most highly subsidized industry in the West. Starting in 2003 however and starting with the efforts of Brazil’s Pedro de Caramago, developing countries began to take a more aggressive and mobilized stance against EU and American subsidization of agricultural products.
As a result, the 2nd Doha Rounds in 2006 will be convened to deal specifically with the issue of the overall liberalization of global agricultural markets. However, the degree to which the final outcome of these talks will be favorable to the least developed countries and the poorest farmers in the world is complicated by regional and global power dynamics, conflicting national agendas, coordination failures amongst WTO members and the dependence of key developing country players on the EU and US. Having set the wheels in motion, Pedro de Caramago is now faced with the challenge of mitigating these tensions and reconciling these potential conflicts in order to establish a common agenda for the Doha Round that could lead to a mutually beneficial resolution that will benefit the least developed countries and significantly impact the poorest farmers in the world.
Several key events led up to the final pressure against the EU and the US with regards to liberalization of their much protected agricultural sectors.
Brazil Sets the Wheels in Motion: The wheels were first set in motion by Pedro de Camargo, when he filed 2 cases on behalf of Brazil against the US cotton and EU sugar subsidies claiming the violation of the Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) signed during the Uruguay Round.
West Africans Mobilize: Riding on this momentum and with the technical help of international organizations the West
In the history of the WTO, it has been unusual for any developing country to win substantial concessions from the dominating EU-US block for increased market access and reduced tariffs. It is much more unusual when these concessions are granted in agricultural products, the most highly subsidized industry in the West. Starting in 2003 however and starting with the efforts of Brazil’s Pedro de Caramago, developing countries began to take a more aggressive and mobilized stance against EU and American subsidization of agricultural products.
As a result, the 2nd Doha Rounds in 2006 will be convened to deal specifically with the issue of the overall liberalization of global agricultural markets. However, the degree to which the final outcome of these talks will be favorable to the least developed countries and the poorest farmers in the world is complicated by regional and global power dynamics, conflicting national agendas, coordination failures amongst WTO members and the dependence of key developing country players on the EU and US. Having set the wheels in motion, Pedro de Caramago is now faced with the challenge of mitigating these tensions and reconciling these potential conflicts in order to establish a common agenda for the Doha Round that could lead to a mutually beneficial resolution that will benefit the least developed countries and significantly impact the poorest farmers in the world.
Several key events led up to the final pressure against the EU and the US with regards to liberalization of their much protected agricultural sectors.
Brazil Sets the Wheels in Motion: The wheels were first set in motion by Pedro de Camargo, when he filed 2 cases on behalf of Brazil against the US cotton and EU sugar subsidies claiming the violation of the Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) signed during the Uruguay Round.
West Africans Mobilize: Riding on this momentum and with the technical help of international organizations the West