Efstathopoulos, Charalampos (2012) Middle power diplomacy in the WTO : India, South Africa and the Doha development agenda. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Abstract

The emergence of Southern powers constitutes a defining feature of contemporary global governance. Their rising impact has been particularly evident in the Doha round of WTO negotiations where leading developing countries have come to play an increasingly important role in the negotiating process. India and South Africa are two Southern powers that played a central role in WTO negotiations during 2001-5. Acting as representatives of the global South, the two countries determined to a considerable extent the positions of developing countries in conceding to the agenda being negotiated or blocking different stages of negotiations. They also projected, however, different strategies, interests and world-views, and ultimately achieved, with varying degrees of success, their relocation within the WTO. The experience of India and South Africa in the first four years of the Doha round constitutes a framework for understanding the conditions under which Southern powers are repositioning in the global trading system and in the international political economy. To understand the role of India and South Africa in the Doha round, this thesis will deploy a synthesis of middle power approaches as the theoretical prism for analysing the trade diplomacy of the two countries. Middle power approaches offer an ensemble of conceptual categories which allow for theorising the rise of Southern powers, delineating both the nature of their influence and their broader systemic role. The middle power roles of India and South Africa will be assessed through a detailed analysis of documents and public statements in the period under examination. It will be demonstrated that during the Doha round, both countries emerged as middle powers projecting a reformist world-view of multilateral trade negotiations. Their ability to effect change was severely conditioned by the leadership provided by the two major trading powers, the US and the EU, and their own capacity to sustain broad bases of followership in the global South.

Request changes to a record

Actions (login required)

View Item