WTO pact negotiations go into crunch time

GENEVA – Stumbling negotiations on a new global free trade pact moved into crunch time yesterday as rich and poor nations mulled decisions that could determine whether the four-year-old talks succeed or fail.

A day after both the United States and the European Union launched proposals they said were aimed at putting the four-year-old Doha Round back on track, developing countries – and others – meet to consider their response. But initial reactions to the two new plans – both centred firmly on the key farm trade issue – were downbeat, with Brazil saying the EU proposals were not enough while Japan rejected the US blueprint out of hand.And the aid agency Oxfam, often close to poor country thinking, dismissed the subsidy and tariff-cutting ideas from US Trade Representative Robert Portman as “smoke and mirrors” aimed at getting “painful concessions” from developing nations.Both plans were set out at a meeting in the Swiss business centre Zurich of ministers from 15 major members of the World Trade Organisation, called just two months before all countries in the 148-nation body meet in Hong Kong.That gathering provides what is widely seen as the last chance for agreement on the basic lines of a new WTO accord aimed at lowering barriers to trade, pumping billions of dollars into the global economy and lifting millions out of poverty.But there is widespread acceptance that all elements for a deal have to be ready before Hong Kong, formally a Ministerial Meeting of the WTO and deep differences remain on central issues – non-farm goods tariffs and services as well as agriculture.For developing countries, the prime conditions for an overall accord are more open rich country markets for their farm produce and firm pledges that the US and EU farm subsidies – which they say undermine their farmers – will be dismantled.Yesterday and today, the focus switched from Zurich to the WTO in Geneva and a series of consultations among different groupings of states – many clearly sceptical on whether a breakthrough is in sight – on the US and EU ideas.Just how vital for the outcome in Hong Kong the two days can be was underlined by EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson at Monday’s Zurich session.”If we do not advance this negotiation in concrete terms this week – and amongst ourselves today – we may simply run out of time,” he told the ministers.The Doha Round, official title of the negotiations, has to be completed by the end of 2006 and, given the complicated and detailed nature of what the final text covering almost every aspect of world trade must be, that deadline can only be met if there is agreement in Hong Kong, diplomats say.If there is failure, major powers keen to broaden foreign markets for their goods and services may drop trying for mutilateral accords in the WTO and concentrate on regional pacts where they use muscle to get what they want more easily.Presenting his package of farm subsidy and tariff cuts on Monday, Portman said the United States was “committed to breaking the deadlock in multilateral talks on agriculture and unleashing the potential of the Doha Round.”His country was “ready to take pain” to that end, he added.But Oxfam said the formulation of the plan meant that US would have to make only a tiny two per cent cut in farm support while continuing to dump surplus produce on world markets.-Nampa-ReutersBut initial reactions to the two new plans – both centred firmly on the key farm trade issue – were downbeat, with Brazil saying the EU proposals were not enough while Japan rejected the US blueprint out of hand.And the aid agency Oxfam, often close to poor country thinking, dismissed the subsidy and tariff-cutting ideas from US Trade Representative Robert Portman as “smoke and mirrors” aimed at getting “painful concessions” from developing nations.Both plans were set out at a meeting in the Swiss business centre Zurich of ministers from 15 major members of the World Trade Organisation, called just two months before all countries in the 148-nation body meet in Hong Kong.That gathering provides what is widely seen as the last chance for agreement on the basic lines of a new WTO accord aimed at lowering barriers to trade, pumping billions of dollars into the global economy and lifting millions out of poverty.But there is widespread acceptance that all elements for a deal have to be ready before Hong Kong, formally a Ministerial Meeting of the WTO and deep differences remain on central issues – non-farm goods tariffs and services as well as agriculture.For developing countries, the prime conditions for an overall accord are more open rich country markets for their farm produce and firm pledges that the US and EU farm subsidies – which they say undermine their farmers – will be dismantled.Yesterday and today, the focus switched from Zurich to the WTO in Geneva and a series of consultations among different groupings of states – many clearly sceptical on whether a breakthrough is in sight – on the US and EU ideas.Just how vital for the outcome in Hong Kong the two days can be was underlined by EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson at Monday’s Zurich session.”If we do not advance this negotiation in concrete terms this week – and amongst ourselves today – we may simply run out of time,” he told the ministers.The Doha Round, official title of the negotiations, has to be completed by the end of 2006 and, given the complicated and detailed nature of what the final text covering almost every aspect of world trade must be, that deadline can only be met if there is agreement in Hong Kong, diplomats say.If there is failure, major powers keen to broaden foreign markets for their goods and services may drop trying for mutilateral accords in the WTO and concentrate on regional pacts where they use muscle to get what they want more easily.Presenting his package of farm subsidy and tariff cuts on Monday, Portman said the United States was “committed to breaking the deadlock in multilateral talks on agriculture and unleashing the potential of the Doha Round.”His country was “ready to take pain” to that end, he added.But Oxfam said the formulation of the plan meant that US would have to make only a tiny two per cent cut in farm support while continuing to dump surplus produce on world markets.-Nampa-Reuters

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