Zoellick Heads to Qatar to Launch Trade Talks

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and other trade officials will travel to the Persian Gulf state of Qatar on Friday to try to launch a new round of global trade talks.

Despite terrorism concerns that have scared away many delegates, the 142-member World Trade Organization is pushing forward with its trade liberalization efforts, hoping to provide a boost to the fragile world economy and avoid a repeat of the November 1999 ministerial in Seattle that collapsed in a cloud of tear gas.

WTO officials still have many issues on the negotiating table, including the concern that developing countries have not shared equally in the benefits of trade and conflicts over agricultural liberalization and intellectual property rights.