WTO, free trade agreements

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) deals with regulation, liberalisation and supervision of trade between its participating countries (as of 1 August 2010: 153 member countries). The WTO also provides a framework for negotiating trade agreements and a dispute settlement system aimed at enforcing participants’ adherence to WTO agreements. Since 2001, WTO members are negotiating further trade liberalisation in the framework of the Doha Development Agenda (“Doha Round”).

For Cerame-Unie, the WTO’s Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT-Agreement) is of utmost importance. Market access barriers of third countries are often related to certification schemes or national standards which violate the WTO’s TBT-Agreement, e.g. by putting undue administrative and cost burdens on imported products. In such cases, joint action with the European Commission and its Delegations in third countries often refers to the third country’s commitments under the TBT-Agreement.

When it comes to the negotiation of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) between the EU and third countries, WTO rules often play an important role by setting the scene for the negotiation process. Several ongoing FTA negotiations also cover ceramic products.