ABSTRACT
Free trade benefits developing countries by providing access to overseas markets. The roles of the world trade system and the framework for environmental protection should be complementary. We need to look at the development of both trade policy and environmental protection rules. Protecting the environment and maintaining an open, and equitable non-discriminatory multilateral trading system are both essential to the achievement of our objective of sustainable development. Environmental policies are increasingly concerned with avoiding environmental degradation at all stages in the life cycle of products. The logic of the life cycle approach in environmental policy is sound. Trade, investment and the environment are all increasingly global issues. The investment issue has been given a higher public profile by the negotiation of the Multilateral Agreement on Investment. An equally important issue for the future will be the relationship between environmental issues and the liberalization of international investment.
