EU Position Causes WTO Talks to Fail

World Trade Organization talks in Geneva on July 24 collapsed without progress on key issues of interest to America’s cattlemen.

“U.S. cattlemen don’t receive domestic supports,” said NCBA chief Economist Gregg Doud.  “Meaningful market access and lower tariffs around the world are the best ways to increase opportunities for U.S. beef producers in international markets.  However, continued posturing on the part of the European Union has denied our cattlemen that access and the opportunity to grow demand for their products overseas.”

Doud said the intransigence of the European Union over its protectionist agricultural policies ruined the talks.

“The fact that the EU isn’t interested in providing anyone additional access into their market smacks of pure protectionism,” he said.  “Protectionism was the reason the European Common Agricultural Policy concept was established decades ago.  It is what we fought against in the Uruguay Round, it is the reason U.S. beef is locked out of the EU, and it is the reason for the collapse of the Doha Round.  Revisiting these negotiations serves no purpose until the EU comes forward with a meaningful agricultural market access and tariff reduction proposal.”

U.S. negotiators called for ending subsidies and greatly reducing tariffs.  This failure of the talks puts more emphasis on Congress renewing presidential Trade Promotion Authority.  That allows the president to negotiate a trade deal that may be approved or rejected by Congress without amending the deal.