ABSTRACT
The common themes running throughout this analysis of the Commodity Protocols of the EU are their particular economic importance to some of the countries of the Commonwealth Caribbean and their demise in the face of the challenge by the United States, under the auspices of the WTO. The historic political and economic post-colonial Commonwealth links of the United Kingdom have rapidly weakened, firstly as the country was integrated more fully into the European Community, and then as the EU itself deepened its economic relations; especially with the creation of the single market, which significantly enhanced the role of the Commission in international trade negotiations. The context of these international negotiations has also changed with the replacement of the GATT by the WTO, which has strengthened the latters role in the regulation of international trade, exposed weaknesses in the ability of smaller states to defend their interests in its deliberations and hastened the movement towards free trade and globalisation.
