International alliances play a role for governments in ensuring conditions of human health and well-being, which have been recognized as a central human right. On the other hand, international trade agreements place corporate rights above health and human rights. International trade agreements threaten existing anti-smoking policies and limit the possibility of introducing new controls. This situation is not recognized by many proponents of tobacco control in signatory countries, particularly in developing countries. Recent agreements on the elimination of various trade restrictions, including those relating to tobacco, have gone far beyond the simple international movement of goods to internal tobacco distribution rules and intellectual property rules to regulate advertising and labelling. Our analysis shows that trade agreements, to the extent that trade agreements protect the tobacco industry, itself a lethal enterprise, undermine human rights principles and contribute to health. The tobacco industry has taken advantage of trade policy to undermine effective barriers to tobacco importation. Trade negotiations provide an unwarranted opportunity for the tobacco industry to advance its interests without public scrutiny. Trade agreements provide industry with additional tools to hinder control policies in both developed and developing countries at all levels. The health community should participate in reversing these trends and help promote additional public health protection measures. In 2003, following serious disagreements between nations within the WTO, the United States turned to expanding its bilateral and regional negotiations with other countries, where the United States generally had exceptional economic and political leverage. These new agreements continue to pose a threat to tobacco control and human rights.

The creation of free trade zones is seen as an exception to the most privileged principle of the World Trade Organization (WTO), since the preferences of the parties to the exclusive granting of a free trade area go beyond their accession obligations. [9] Although GATT Article XXIV authorizes WTO members to establish free trade zones or to conclude interim agreements necessary for their establishment, there are several conditions relating to free trade zones or interim agreements leading to the creation of free trade zones. The GATT has defined the broad principles that are now being applied by the World Trade Organization (WTO). An important principle is the non-discrimination between foreign goods and goods produced on domestic territory and between all foreign goods. GATT lowered tariffs and other trade barriers, such as import quotas, and imposed equal treatment between foreign and domestic products. Another principle was harmonization of international standards, which can set a ceiling for regulatory requirements, not land.