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would be discussed, to which every potential membership candidate was willing to<br />

grant unrestricted market access. This, according to the majority of the international<br />

press, would constitute a pioneer innovation and consequently the concept could be<br />

described in terms of a FTAA light, or even a FTAA à la carte. But this view is to some<br />

extent short-sighted, since the most controversial issues, like investment and public<br />

procurement policy, have not been erased from the agenda of negotiations, but have<br />

been merely temporarily postponed. 3<br />

At the same time negotiations within the World Trade Organization (WTO) on<br />

the worldwide liberalization of markets is under way. The Fourth Round of Ministers,<br />

the highest decision-making body of the WTO, at their meeting in Doha, Qatar in<br />

November of 2001, had decided on the topics of the new world trade round (Qatar<br />

Round). The main topics of the Doha-Agenda, which officially functions under the<br />

title “Doha-Development-Round”, are the liberalization of trade of goods and services<br />

and investment, as well as intellectual property rights. 4<br />

The proposed objectives of these multilateral negotiations are free market access,<br />

while taking into account the WTO principles of the National Treatment (NT) and<br />

the Most Favored Nation Clause (MFN). These “non-discrimination” rules of the WTO<br />

define National Treatment as equal market access opportunities for national as well<br />

as international suppliers, which cannot be restricted by local, regional or national<br />

law. Most Favored Nation Clause means that all trade-related advantages, which are<br />

granted to a WTO-member country have to be granted to all other members as well.<br />

According to the original schedule the Doha-Agenda should be passed in 2005. But<br />

after the “failure” in Cancún and due to the existing divergences, which could not be<br />

resolved at the WTO December meeting in Geneva, the original timetable has gone a<br />

bit off course, or is, so to say, temporarily broken off. Given these circumstances, the<br />

focus of attention has once again been placed on bilateral negotiation levels, which<br />

of course include the negotiation process between the EU and MERCOSUR.<br />

After negotiations began between MERCOSUR and the EU at the end of 1999,<br />

new points were set within the framework of “political dialogue” and “cooperation”<br />

at the IInd Summit of Heads of State of Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe in<br />

Madrid in May 2002. The final political discussions on the free trade agreement are<br />

anticipated to take place by the heads of state at the IIIrd Summit in Guadalajara/<br />

Mexico from May 28-29, 2004. Based on the renewed offers to negotiate the mutual<br />

“liberalization” of markets and market access, which are planned for April 15, 2004,<br />

the agreement could be signed by October 2004.<br />

3 This view is also reflected by the analysis of the Hemispheric Social Alliance - Alianza Social Continental - Aliança<br />

Social Continental at http://www.asc-hsa.org, or also the Rede Brasileira pela Integração dos Povos (Rebrip) at:<br />

http://www.rebrip.org.br.<br />

4 http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/dda_e/dda_e.htm.<br />

11

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