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May 23, 2008 | Striking a Proper Match?

Michele Rioux & Susan Ariel Aaronson: Strategies to Link Trade Agreements and Real Labor Rights Improvements:

February 6, 2008 | Multilateral Aid Programs Are on the Line

Robert Zoellick: The president of the World Bank expresses his concern regarding the German focus on bilateral aid programs in an interview with Rüdiger Lentz, head of the Deutsche Welle studio in Washington and executive director USA of the Atlantic Initiative.

September 17, 2007 | Ukraine Opens a New Chapter in EU Relations

Oleksandr Chalyi: I call for an enhanced bilateral agreement between the EU and Ukraine with integration and association as its ultimate goal. Yuschenko’s New Realism must aim to meet the Copenhagen criteria within ten years, unilaterally if necessary.

July 31, 2007 | Germany's EU Presidency: Internal Leadership and External Neglect

Marco Overhaus: and Hanns Maull of the University of Trier: We argue that the German EU presidency failed to raise the EU’s profile as a foreign policy actor. Though successful in internal reform, Gemany’s tenure at Europe’s helm failed to provide real progress in Kosovo, Palestine, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Sudan and Iran.

October 16, 2008 | Russia Needs a Friend

The West is “pushing away” Russia, not the other way around. ++ The US needs to see Russia’s point of view for a change. ++ At the end of the Cold War, there was “no move to meet Russia partway;” instead, the US “talked away” Russian attempts at integration with Western institutions. ++ Yeltsin looked like a puppet for trying to gain acceptance and Putin came to power as a result. ++ It’s time

September 5, 2008 | Asian Free Trade Agreements Balk at WTO and US

Meeting in Singapore, 10 southeast Asian nations along with India confirmed yet another FTA that clearly indicates the waning influence of the WTO and the US in the region. ++ Many such countries, especially India, prefer small-scale bilateral agreements and FTAs. ++ It was the Asian block that called on Europe and the US to change their farm subsidy policies at Doha, which contributed to

July 14, 2008 | Sarkozy Jeopardizes the Next Trade Talks

The prospects for a global agreement to slash subsidies and tariffs at the WTO meeting in Geneva next Monday are dim. ++ At stake is the Doha Round of trade liberalization talks. ++ The latest threat to the Doha Round comes from an all-too-familiar source: France. ++ Sarkozy said “I will never accept a reduction in agricultural production on the altar of global liberalism.” ++ Perhaps Sarkozy

June 30, 2008 | The Danger of a League of Democracies

Senator McCain’s call for a “League of Democracies” would be a danger rather than an aid to world peace. ++ With both Russia and China excluded, the league would be unable to combat the most pressing global matters: terrorism, climate change, and nuclear proliferation. ++ McCain’s plan could even create a Cold War-like tension between democratic and autocratic states. ++ The League of Democracies

June 12, 2008 | Moving Doha Forward is Critical for Global Free Trade

Surprisingly, it is some of the fastest developing countries such as China and India, that are slowing down the Doha development talks. ++ Protectionism in one country triggers a chain reaction that blocks free trade in several sectors across the globe. ++ The losers are those for whom Doha was conceptualized: farmers and small businesses in slowly developing countries. ++ Opening up the

April 14, 2008 | Liberalizing Services for Future Growth

Since they help increase productivity and develop economic potential, efficient services are fundamental to modern economies. ++ Because the service sector is expanding rapidly and contributing to sustainable growth, liberalization could boost the world economy by $1 trillion. ++ Australia and the US will thus not support the WTO’s Doha package unless it includes commitments to loosen constraints

March 28, 2008 | The OECD: A Response to Turkey's Challenges

The significant and growing contribution of emerging markets to the global economy demonstrates the strategic importance for the OECD to cooperate and engage with them, with an ultimate view to membership. ++ Countries like Turkey also have much to gain from the OECD’s knowledge of good policy practices. ++ The OECD’s platforms and instruments would provide for “increased

December 21, 2007 | Still No Progress in Sino-American Trade Talks

The Economist reports that the Sino-American trade talks have achieved very little, despite US Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson’s impressive links with China.
Thus, the economic meetings, dubbed “Strategic Dialogue,” although producing very little of either, failed to meet their initial goal, namely to progress towards stronger economic ties.
The biggest, and seemingly irreconcilable,

August 29, 2007 | The Increasing Importance Of Africa in US Trade Relations

Princeton Lyman, former US ambassador to Nigeria and South Africa, writes together with Council on Foreign Relations director Patricia Dorff that the United States must recognize Africa’s growing significance and improve the assistance it currently provides to the continent. The United States currently imports 15 percent of its oil from Africa, equal to its share from the Middle East, and

May 31, 2007 | Bruegel Says Worldwide Exchange Rates Adjustment Would Fight Current Account Deficits

The March 2007 Bruegel Policy Brief reveals that imbalances in global current account positions are not sustainable and need adjustment. A 15% depreciation of the dollar and an appreciation of Asian currencies is needed in order to:

• reduce the US current account deficit,
• faciliate China’s focus on domestic demand and reduce its accumulation of foreign exchange reserves, and
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April 16, 2007 | Kiroku Hanai on Consolidation of US-Japanese Economic Partnership

If Japan intends to preserve its status in world trade, it must negotiate an economic partnership agreement with its biggest trading partner, the US, warns journalist Kiroku Hanai. Japan already lags behind South Korea and China in completing bilateral trade agreements and has recently shied away from free trade because of its weak agricultural sector, preferring instead multilateral negotiations

April 12, 2007 | Eric Heymann Sees Wasted Energy in the Airbus-Boeing Trial

If an agreement can be reached in the WTO dispute between Airbus and Boeing, it will be achieved only after a long and costly process, writes Eric Heymann of Deutsche Bank Research. Since the original agreement of 1979, the issue of subsidies has become a focal point of heated discussion. Both sides accuse one another of receiving state subsidies, which hinder open competition. Heymann, writing

April 12, 2007 | Mei Ying Gechlik on China's Intellectual Property Rights Balancing Act

Protection of intellectual property rights has become increasingly important since China’s admission to the WTO, reports Mei Ying Gechlik of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Foreign companies should trust the Chinese judicial system to protect their patent rights. Mechanisms such as judicial review have proven successful in appealing decisions of the Patent Reexamination Board.

April 12, 2007 | Mirela Isic Argues For Transatlantic Free Trade

A Transatlantic Free Trade Area (TAFTA) could provide new momentum for the transatlantic relationship, reports Mirela Isic of the Center for Applied Policy Research in Munich. An alliance that handles one third of world trade and produces more than 40% of world GDP would be a good safeguard against variations in the world economy such as those caused by integrating India and China into the world