The success or failure of the Doha Round of trade negotiations depends on the willingness of emerging economies like China, India, and Brazil to accept the responsibility that goes along with their growing roles in the world economy, a top US trade official said on Tuesday.
"Make no mistake: the success or failure of the Doha Round depends on whether advanced developing countries like China, India, and Brazil will accept the responsibility that goes along with their growing roles in the global economy," US Trade Representative Ron Kirk said.
In his remarks at the US Chamber of Commerce on World Trade Week, Kirk said the US continues to lead efforts to shake loose the economic promise of an agreement with real market access for all involved.
"Today, the key roadblock is the continued resistance of some important partners to engage in sustained, meaningful negotiations," he said.
Noting that the pending FTAs (free trade agreements) are important opportunities to grow well-paying jobs at home, he said that is why USTR is working to address issues with these agreements and find ways to move them forward.
Kirk heads to China next week to attend the Strategic and Economic Dialogue, chaired by the US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, and the Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner.
"The S&ED is an important forum to discuss macroeconomic issues and security issues. But it is also a staging ground for the more granular issues on which Commerce Secretary (Gary) Locke and I will seek action at the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade," he said.
America's next steps with China include continued pressure to strengthen their IPR regime - and to step back on flawed and troubling policies across the industrial sector, like indigenous innovation.
"Many companies have highlighted China's recent measures to support indigenous innovation as a major concern among a growing set of industrial policy measures," he said.
USTR has made clear at all levels of the Chinese government that, even though it is in US and Chinese interest to promote innovation, innovation is no excuse for discrimination.
"We appreciate efforts China's government has made to address our concern, but we have urged them to refrain from further steps down this path.
Instead, we need to sit down and talk about how to foster real innovation to benefit us all," he said.
"Questions and potential trade barriers around American intellectual property, goods, and services will only multiply in the coming decades -not just in China, but with trading partners around the world," he said.
