Globalizing the Gatt: The Soviet Union's Successor States, Eastern Europe, and the International Trading System

Abstract

The explosive events in Eastern Europe in recent years have dramatically changed the political landscape that had existed for several decades. The new environment of the post-Cold War world will force a difficult and fundamental transformation in traditional Western perspectives. The West's approach toward trade with the East will undoubtedly be the subject of significant debate in the next decade. This book addresses the issue of reintegration by the Soviet Union and East Central Europe into the global economy and focuses on their participation in the international trade institution, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). It considers the task of adjusting Western policies toward trade with the East and focuses on East-West political-economic relations. Through interviews with former and current officials from the European Community, the GATT secretariat, Hungary, Poland and the US, Leah Haus traces the historical origins and evolution of Soviet and East Central European countries' relations with GATT from the 1940s to the present. Explaining the Western policies toward these trade negotiations with the East, she demonstrates the extent to which strategic political objectives have traditionally driven the West's position. Haus analyzes the different aproaches taken by the U.S. and the European Community toward the trade policy dilemmas raised in these negotiations with non-market economy countries. The book concludes by considering current policy issues and by discussing the diverse implications of integrating the Soviet Union into the GATT in the post-Cold War world.