Santiago,18 April 1998
Address to the Second Summit of the Americas, Santiago de Chile
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Your decision to launch negotiations to create the Free Trade area of the Americas will certainly have profound implications not only for your countries but also for the entire world economy. There is no doubt that the FTAA project is a fundamental movement towards trade liberalization and increased prosperity for the American Hemisphere.
There is
another important aspect that flows from your debates. The starting point of this
historical collaboration and interdependence is, as usual, trade liberalization; the
elimination of barriers dividing countries, economies and people. But at the same
time you have raised your sights beyond the trade horizon and you look to other human,
social and political issues which our citizens consider more and more essential in
international cooperation.
At present, regional initiatives (some times on a continental scale like the FTAA) are on
the front pages of most newspapers. History shows that, in many respects, regional
trade initiatives have benefitted the world economy. Experience
in regional agreements has positively contributed to the development of multilateral trade
rules, and for developing countries in particular, regional initiatives have been
important stepping stones to liberalizing and expanding trade. The point
is simply to ensure at every level that regional efforts complement not compete with, the
multilateral system that is so important for the global economy.
It is undeniable that the integration of the world economy and the new technologies are increasingly moving us toward a globalized and interdependent world. Our countries and our industries need global rules to prosper in global markets.
It is also politically important because we have to know what kind of world we want to shape, taking into account the reality of global integration and technological advances. Do we want a world divided into four or five different regional trading areas, each one with its own rules and benefitting from free trade inside, but still with barriers to trade from outside? Or do we want one single global free trade area with multilateral rules approved by all participants and with an enforcement capacity?
I am sure that the Free Trade Area of the Americas will become a powerful force in favour of the global path when the time will be right.
We are
celebrating in May in Geneva the 50th Anniversary of the creation of the multilateral
system. Over 50 years the system has proven its success in contributing to world
economic growth. It has done so by reducing trade barriers worldwide, increasing the
participation of developing countries in the global economy, and creating a framework of
consensus-based trade rules which is now almost universal.
I hope to see as many as possible of you in Geneva next month at the celebration of the
50th Anniversary of the multilateral trading system. This will be an invaluable and
unique occasion not only to reaffirm at the highest political
level the value of the system and the need to ensure its continued effectiveness, but also
to send a powerful political message to the world about the opportunities of globalization
and the fact that in the WTO system our citizens have an ally and a guide which can help
in understanding, approaching and benefitting from the transformations they are living
through.