After 10 years of protracted negotiations the Doha round, which promises so much, remains unconcluded. This reflects very badly on the political leadership of the process in various key countries. We have, of course, grown accustomed to the oft-repeated expressions of positive intent about the round associated with virtually every recent major global summit but it is still some way from a satisfactory conclusion (notwithstanding the Herculean efforts of my successor as director general, Pascal Lamy). The reason for this lamentable state of affairs is political intransigence or lack of focus. The costs of immobility are reckoned to be less than those of compromise.
經過長達10年的談判後，有著衆多承諾的杜哈(Doha)回合貿易談判仍未達成協議。這使得人們對關鍵國家對這一進程的政治領導能力留下了非常糟糕的印象。當然，在最近幾乎所有的大型全球峯會，與會者都對本輪迴合反覆表達出良好的意願，對此我們已經司空見慣，但距離達成令人滿意的協議還有一段距離（儘管我的繼任者世界貿易組織(WTO)總幹事帕斯卡爾•拉米(Pascal Lamy)做出了巨大努力）。會出現這種令人遺憾的局面，原因是政治上拒絕讓步或缺乏關注。各方認爲，按兵不動的代價將小於做出妥協。