Joint statement by

The Young Liberals of Norway (Norges Unge Venstre) and
The Young Liberals of Switzerland (Jungfreisinnige Schweiz)


Norway and Switzerland must take driver's seat in WTO talks

The Young Liberals of Norway and the Young Liberals of Switzerland call
upon their respective governments to take the driver's seat in getting
WTO-Doha talks back on track. Norway and Switzerland must abandon their
current navel-gazing strategy of protecting national special interests,
and instead use their combined diplomatic strength to help facilitate a
successful conclusion to the Doha Development Round, which would create
substantial additional wealth and opportunities around the globe and
lift millions of people out of poverty.

The G-10 alliance - including Switzerland and Norway - has become an
obstacle to progress because of petty protectionist positions in key
areas of WTO talks, most notably agriculture. Rather than fighting
against trade liberalisation, Norway and Switzerland - as rich countries
whose prosperity is largely owed to trade with the rest of the world -
should be the first to recognise the benefits of free trade and hence
should work actively for the continuing removal of existing trade
barriers and other trade distortions.

Concretely, Switzerland and Norway should lead by example through the
unilateral abolition of all export subsidies, a major reduction in all
agricultural subsidies and their decoupling from production. The
opposition to a maximum ceiling on tariffs should be abandoned. Norway
and Switzerland must work actively for the adoption within the WTO of
the Cassis-de-Dijon principle of mutual recognition to combat
effectively non-tariff barriers such as the abuse of technical standards
and regulations to protect domestic producers against foreign
competition.

The Young Liberals of Norway and the Young Liberals of Switzerland
believe that a world without barriers to trade is a world that is more
prosperous; that offers a way out of poverty for millions who currently
face unfair competition; that offers more opportunities and freedom for
everyone; and ultimately, that offers more happiness around the globe.
Therefore, we are committed to the removal of all barriers to trade, not
just the barriers to Norwegian and Swiss exports. In order to create a
truly global market with a level playing field for all, we call for the
abolishment of all trade-distorting measures, including tariffs,
technical barriers, export subsidies and production subsidies.

For more information, contact:

Boye Bjerkholt
International Officer
Young Liberals of Norway (Norges Unge Venstre)
phone:             +47 93412869
e-mail:              boyeb@liberal.no

Adrian Ineichen
International Officer
Young Liberals of Switzerland (jungfreisinnige schweiz)
phone:              +41 763090965
e-mail:              adrian.ineichen@jungfreisinnige.ch