International Trade Daily | September 26, 2001 | By Daniel Pruzin
DOHA, Qatar--Qatari officials have stressed their willingness and desire to proceed as host for the World Trade Organization's fourth ministerial conference next November despite concerns about security in the region following the terrorist attacks in the United States. Speaking to reporters in Doha Sept. 22, Minister of Finance, Economy and Trade Youssef Hussain Kamel he had no reason to believe at this time that the ministerial scheduled for Nov. 9-13 in the Qatari capital would be postponed due to increased tensions in the Middle East arising from anticipated U.S. military retaliation to the terrorist attacks.
"We're taking all the steps necessary to provide our guests with a comfortable situation, including security, which these days is the most important thing," said Kamel, who will visit with WTO officials in Geneva Sept. 26 to discuss preparations for the ministerial. "On the issue of security, I feel we have good experience in this field," the trade minister added, citing Qatar's experience last November in hosting 43 heads of state for an Islamic Conference meeting as well as a regional gathering organized by the World Economic Forum.
Qatar Ready to Host Meeting
"At this time, there is a question whether we are ready to receive our guests on Nov. 9. The answer is yes--we don't have anything in mind which would cause us to change our position." Qatar's emir, Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, is scheduled to visit Washington starting Oct. 2 and will meet with President Bush on Oct. 4. Although regional security issues will be the main topic of discussion, Qatari officials are also expected to discuss the WTO ministerial meeting with their U.S. counterparts.
Trade diplomats admit there is a palatable nervousness in at WTO headquarters in Geneva about the idea of holding a major international conference in the Middle East given the present situation. Although no delegation has openly asked for WTO members to review their decision to host the ministerial in Qatar, several officials claim the Swiss government has been quietly asked to determine whether Geneva could be used as a last-minute backup if the situation in the Middle East deteriorates.
Several key trade officials, including U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and European Union trade commissioner Pascal Lamy, have stressed the need for the meeting to go ahead as planned. "For Qatar, we feel that the gesture is very important," declared Ahmed Abdulla Al-Mehmood, Qatar's minister of state for foreign affairs. "We don't want to give any signal to the world that because of this terrorist attack, we should postpone this conference."
Going ahead with the meeting was particularly important since the terrorist attacks against the United States were both economic and political in nature, Al-Mehmood said. The main goal of the Doha ministerial will be the launch of a new trade round, something which WTO members spectacularly failed to achieve at their last gathering in Seattle in 1999.
"We hope that this most important ministerial conference will come up with a successful solution which will be helpful to both developed and developing countries," Al-Mehmood said.
Little Unrest in Qatar
Qatar has a reputation as being one of the most open and pro-Western states in the Gulf region. The potential for conflict between U.S. forces and Islamic extremists has not resulted in any visible manifestations of support for, or protest against, U.S. military action, although some admit there is a quiet fear that the country could get caught up in a wider regional conflagration. Income from Qatar's oil and gas industries, which account for an overwhelming share of the country's $5 billion in annual revenue, has helped quell the Islamic extremism that has plagued other countries such as Pakistan and Egypt. Qatar also has a large and disparate expatriate community which make up two-thirds of the country's 600,000-strong population.
Qatar itself was quiet throughout the Gulf War, and locals jokingly note that the last public demonstration which required police action was a huge traffic jam several years at the Doha McDonald's when it started a burger price war to counter competition from newly-arrived Burger King.
Costs of Cancellation High
Having budgeted between $15-20 million to host the WTO ministerial, Qatar has a clear economic interest in seeing the meeting go ahead. Cancellation would be a severe setback to a hotel and tourism industry that is already suffering the effects of the U.S. terrorist attacks. Local papers report that major hotels are already losing $100,000 a week each from booking cancellations, and a spokesman for the Doha Sheraton, which will host the main meetings as well as many of the delegates, said that the hotel would lose $2.2 million if the ministerial were moved out of the country. If a U.S. military attack is launched, trade officials say that WTO members may have no other option but to postpone the Doha ministerial, particularly if the U.S. trade delegation declines to attend, and to reschedule it for sometime next year.
But Kamel said it was not a given that Qatar would be able to act as host at a later date. "If they change the date, I have to go back to my Cabinet for approval, and I'm not sure I can get it," the trade minister warned. Qatar was the only WTO member offering to host the fourth ministerial following the riot-scarred gathering in Seattle.
Copyright c 2001 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., Washington D.C.International Trade Daily:
