10-Oct-2006
Financial Express
Perhaps the best explanation of why bilateral trade agreements are so popular comes from Pascal Lamy, who was the predecessor to Peter Mandelson as Europe’s trade commissioner. Mr Lamy, now director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), is fond of saying: "Politicians tell you that when they sign a bilateral agreement with a pal, they get on TV. When they are the 149th minister around the table at the WTO, they don’t get on TV."
7-Apr-2006
Financial Times
“A lot of these bilateral deals have nothing to do with economics. Instead, they [Asian Development Bank’s members] are mostly doing it for diplomatic reasons, including efforts to gain access to natural resources.”
22-Mar-2006
Financial Express
The European Union is exploring the prospect of free trade deals with Asian nations once the current round of world trade talks is over, EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said on Tuesday.