{
  "id": "RL32053",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "RL32053",
  "active": false,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 101709,
      "date": "2003-09-30",
      "retrieved": "2016-04-08T14:37:15.067544",
      "title": "Agriculture in WTO Negotiations",
      "summary": "The World Trade Organization's (WTO) fifth ministerial conference (held September 10-14,\n2003\nin Cancun, Mexico) ended without an agreement on a framework for continuing multilateral\nnegotiations on agricultural trade liberalization. The inconclusive end of the Cancun ministerial\nplaces in doubt the ability of WTO member countries to complete the current round of negotiations\nby the scheduled January 1, 2005 deadline.\n  WTO member countries launched this new round of multilateral trade negotiations in\nNovember 2001 at the WTO's fourth ministerial conference in Doha, Qatar. Because of its emphasis\non integrating developing countries into the global trading system, the round is called the Doha\nDevelopment Agenda (DDA). The new round incorporates agriculture into a comprehensive\nframework that includes negotiations on industrial tariffs, services, dispute settlement, and other\ntrade issues. The ambitious agenda for agricultural trade liberalization calls for substantially\nimproving market access, reducing and phasing out export subsidies, and substantially reducing\ntrade-distorting domestic support. \n  While the United States and the EU reached agreement on a broad framework for negotiating\nagricultural trade liberalization before the Cancun meeting, a group of developing countries, the\nG-22 which includes Brazil, China, India, and South Africa, among others, made a counter-proposal\nwhich makes fewer demands on developing countries than the EU-U.S. framework. The Chairman\nof the Cancun ministerial circulated a draft declaration at the meeting that attempted to reconcile\ndifferences between developed and developing countries on the agricultural issues. Neither the\nproposals made by the United States and the EU and the G-22 nor the Chairman's draft declaration\npropose specific modalities (formulas, targets, or timetables) for reducing tariffs and trade-distorting\nsupport and for phasing out export subsidies. \n  WTO meetings are scheduled to continue, beginning with an agriculture negotiating group\nmeeting in October and ending with a senior level stock taking in December 2003. Amid\nconsiderable uncertainty about prospects for completing the round, WTO members, including the\nUnited States, the EU, the G-21 and other countries, are taking stock and considering options for\nconcluding the round. U.S. trade officials also have indicated they will be focusing attention on\nbilateral and regional trade negotiations. \n  Much of U.S. agriculture would benefit from further multilateral trade liberalization, but some\nU.S. products might face stiffer foreign competition at home or in third-country markets. DDA\nnegotiations, if they result in new commitments to reduce trade-distorting domestic support or export\nsubsidies, also could affect U.S. farm programs authorized in the 2002 farm bill ( P.L. 107-171 ). Any\nagreements reached in the new round would be taken up by Congress under fast-track procedures\nfor legislation to implement trade agreements as spelled out in the Trade Act of 2002 ( P.L. 107-210 ). \nThis report will be updated periodically.",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORTS",
      "active": false,
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          "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/RL32053",
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      "topics": []
    }
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Agricultural Policy"
  ]
}