Nov 7, 1989
TEXTILE NEGOTIATORS DIVIDED ON HOW TO NEGOTIATE.
GENEVA, NOVEMBER 3 (BY CHAKRAVARTHI RAGHAVAN)— Exporting and importing countries of textiles and clothing appear to be sharply divided on how to proceed further in the Uruguay Round negotiations for integration of this trade into the GATT. The negotiating group, which had set a three-day meeting this week, ended its work on the first day, unable to resolve the serious differences in drawing up an agenda for "structured" negotiations, participants said. The group is chaired by Lindsay Duthie of Australia. The next meeting of the negotiating group is slated for December 14-15, just before the year-end meetings of the Group of Negotiations on Goods (GNG) and the Trade Negotiations Committee (TNC). Third world participants said that the total lack of progress in this and other areas of high priority to the third world had to be contrasted with the efforts of the industrialised countries, and the chairmen of the negotiating groups concerned, on the new themes. The group at this week's meeting discussed a paper by India on the modalities for integration of the textiles and clothing sector into GATT. Participants said that third world exporting countries supported the general approach in the Indian paper. The Indian paper calls for a freeze on any new restrictions from 1 January 1990, agreement not to renew the MFA after the current protocol expires on 1 august 1991, a five-year transition to phase-out existing restrictions and phasing-in the application of GATT rules and disciplines. It would also end during the transitional period recourse to bilateral agreements, and would apply normal GATT safeguard rules for products not under restraint or on which restrictions are phased out. Participants said that while not all third world speakers supported every aspect of the Indian proposals, they nevertheless supported the approach. The efforts to prepare a structured agenda for the future work of the group apparently broke in disagreement when the U.S., EEC and other industrial nations wanted as an item in such an agenda "the scope of the negotiations". India and other exporting countries said the scope of negotiations had been clearly settled and set out in the April mid-term accord. The issue of a structured agenda is expected to be pursued informally and at the next meeting when the negotiating group is to discuss any new papers or proposals that might be tabled, as also proposals already on the table. Third world countries have been very critical of the U.S. and EEC in not putting forward any specific proposals of theirs, but still talking in conceptual and vague terms and trying to create so many inter-linkages with other negotiations as to cast doubts about their seriousness in this sector of negotiations. The U.S., EEC and other industrial countries have not so far put forward any specific negotiating proposals or modalities for phasing out the MFA, which currently governs this trade as a derogation from GATT rules. While they have aired their ideas about the linkages with other negotiations and ancillary issues, there has been no proposal by them about a time-limit for ending the MFA, and how the trade would be "gradually" integrated into GATT and under what conditions. Third world countries, at this week's meeting, would appear to have steered clear of any discussion or any comments on the vague statements and diversionary proposals of the U.S. and EEC in their respective statements and papers at earlier meetings of the group.