Turning points and international environments: Multilateral negotiations in the GATT and the WTO

A turning points analysis is used to capture the negotiating dynamics that occur within the structure of the GATT and the WTO. Ministerial/Council-level operations and Committee-level operations are distinguished. Within WTO Doha Development Agenda negotiations (2001-present), we isolate Ministerial/Council-level data and within GATT, we isolate Committee-level data by examining Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights negotiations conducted during the GATT Uruguay round (1985-1994) and at the WTO Doha Ministerial (2001). A detailed chronology of each case is compiled, followed by the identification of precipitants, departures and consequences, which are the three parts of a turning points analysis. We conclude that the precipitants that led to negotiation turning points in the Ministerial/Council environment are exclusively internal and generally procedural. The precipitants creating turning points within the Committee environment are generally internal and substantive. These conclusions have implications for our understanding of international environments and their impact on negotiation process.