A show of unity

I'd wondered earlier whether the Commonwealth countries would be able to agree on the direction which the WTO should take in its upcoming round of negotiations. It turns out that they didn't have much trouble at all:

The leaders of the 53 Commonwealth countries, who have been meeting in Malta, called for more flexibility at the World Trade Organization negotiations in December in Hong Kong.

"We call on all developed countries to demonstrate the political courage and will to give more than they receive ... particularly in the negotiations on agriculture and market access, as their own longer term prosperity and security depends on such an approach," the leaders said in a group statement issued after a day of meetings on Saturday.

Obviously the tougher task will be to get similar agreement at the WTO meeting. But at the very least, the Commonwealth's message should help to push negotiations in the right direction.