Foreign Correspondence

[Amaunet]

WTO Ruling Favoring Brazil Threatens US Economic Sovereignty

WASHINGTON - April 27 - Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich said today that the economic sovereignty of the United States took a serious blow yesterday when the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled that U.S. cotton production and export programs violated international trade agreements.

The negative impact of the ruling (which has not yet been made public) could extend to other segments of U.S. farming and agribusiness. These include corn, rice, wheat, and other commodities, Kucinich warned. "It's the agricultural version of the trade policy that has allowed millions of U.S. manufacturing and service-sector jobs to be outsourced to foreign countries," he explained.

"I have been arguing the case for months that our membership in the WTO and our participation in unfair trade agreements like NAFTA put American jobs, American businesses, and the American economy at the mercy of global corporations which are moving jobs out of this country to wherever they can find cheap labor," said Kucinich."

The ruling could result in major economic penalties and trade sanctions against the United States unless the U.S. agrees to change its domestic farm-assistance programs, Kucinich said.

The United States is the world's top cotton exporter, with more than 40 percent of the world market. Brazil, which filed the complaint against the U.S. with the WTO, said U.S. cotton producers and related manufacturers enjoy an unfair competitive advantage over other nations.

Scaling back U.S. production and exports would result in higher international prices, which would help cotton farmers in Brazil and other nations, Brazil argued.

"The United States should repeal NAFTA and a host of other multi-lateral trade agreements and withdraw from the WTO," Kucinich said.

The unfairness of current trade agreements has been a major plank in Kucinich's campaign platform. "I've stayed in this race because the American people need to hear a debate about these issues; and the Democratic Party needs to take a stand in favor of ending these policies and representing the economic interests of Americans."


http://www.commondreams.org/news2004/0427-10.htm




Brazil wins landmark case against US
Tuesday, April 27 14:48:39

(BizWorld)

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has ruled in favour of Brazil's complaint that US cotton subsidies distort world prices, violate global trade rules and price developing nations' goods out of markets.

The ruling marks a major defeat for the US in what was seen as a key trade battle on cotton subsidies. It has also given poor nations a victory in their battle against rich nations' farm subsidies.
The US gave out nearly USD4bn in cotton payments in the 2001-2002 season for a crop valued at only USD3bn.


This gave US farmers the ability to sell cotton below cost price, costing Brazilian farmers USD600m in sales during the 2001 marketing season alone, Brasilia argued.

Brazil's decision to take the issue to the WTO in February 2003 was the first challenge to the domestic farm policy of a rich country.

The WTO interim ruling could lead to a wave of challenges against US, European and Japanese farm subsidies. It could weaken their defence of farm aid in the current Doha Round of global free trade talks meant to wrap up this year.

The export dumping of US cotton raises poverty, unemployment and debt in cotton-dependent West African nations such as Benin, Mali and Togo, according to aid group Oxfam.

US trade officials said their subsidies were consistent with WTO rules and they would appeal the WTO decision if the final report was not changed.

http://www.businessworld.ie/livenews.htm?a=904788;s=rollingnews.htm