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A History of the FTAAConclusion

A History of the FTAA: Conclusion [The history of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) negotiations demonstrates the importance of putting agency in relation to structure when examining multilateral negotiations as well as shifts within global governance structures. With respect to structure, the asymmetries that characterized the economic relationships between the FTAA’s participants played no small part in shaping the evolution of the negotiations. For example, for Caribbean countries, the smaller sizes of their economies not only shaped their demand for differentiated treatment and compensatory mechanisms but also shaped their ability to participate in the negotiations, given the important limits on their institutional capacities. In terms of agency, the diplomatic tactics and skills of certain countries, particularly Brazil, played an important role in shaping both the structure and content of the FTAA negotiations. However, examined in isolation from one another, structure and agency only reveal part of the FTAA’s story. A focus on structural factors neglects the importance of the consensus that was in place at the beginning of the negotiations and cannot address the shifts in positions that took place during the negotiation of the agreement. An emphasis on agency disregards the manner in which social and political contexts shaped the positions and strategies employed by state actors during the negotiations.] http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png

A History of the FTAAConclusion

Nelson, Marcel
Springer Journals — Oct 16, 2015
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Publisher
Palgrave Macmillan US
Copyright
© Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Nature America Inc. 2015
ISBN
978-1-349-48969-5
Pages
201 –208
DOI
10.1057/9781137412751_7
Publisher site
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Abstract

[The history of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) negotiations demonstrates the importance of putting agency in relation to structure when examining multilateral negotiations as well as shifts within global governance structures. With respect to structure, the asymmetries that characterized the economic relationships between the FTAA’s participants played no small part in shaping the evolution of the negotiations. For example, for Caribbean countries, the smaller sizes of their economies not only shaped their demand for differentiated treatment and compensatory mechanisms but also shaped their ability to participate in the negotiations, given the important limits on their institutional capacities. In terms of agency, the diplomatic tactics and skills of certain countries, particularly Brazil, played an important role in shaping both the structure and content of the FTAA negotiations. However, examined in isolation from one another, structure and agency only reveal part of the FTAA’s story. A focus on structural factors neglects the importance of the consensus that was in place at the beginning of the negotiations and cannot address the shifts in positions that took place during the negotiation of the agreement. An emphasis on agency disregards the manner in which social and political contexts shaped the positions and strategies employed by state actors during the negotiations.]

Published: Oct 16, 2015

Keywords: Civil Society; International Monetary Fund; World Trade Organization; Governance Mechanism; Political Society

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