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| JORNAL A TARDE- 18.04.2006
World trade negotiations will likely need some proposal made by the World Trade Organization´s (WTO) higher command before an agreement may be reached on some pact that will liberate world trade, was the remark made by a high US government authority. The vice Secretary of State, Robert Zoellick, who from 2001 to last year was the USA´s main trade representative, says he is pessimistic about WTO member countries reaching this agreement on their own. "My own vision of the dynamics of the talks.. is that the ministers will have a hard time doing this on their own and, at some point, the WTO director general will have to submit a proposal," said Zoellick in his declaration to the Institute for International Economics. The WTO director general, Pascal Lamy, has rejected former suggestions to submit a plan to end the deadlock in the talks, which are divided into three key areas-- agriculture, manufactures and services. Lamy was the EU trade commissioner when Zoellick was the trade representative for the United States. Both played an important role in launching the current round of talks over four years ago in Doha, Qatar. Zoellick´s comments came at a time of growing uncertainties regarding whether the WTO member countries will be able to meet the April 30 deadline for drawing up formulas that will foster reduction in farm subsidies and farm and manufactured product tariffs. Lamy told the member countries that he would be calling a meeting on Friday to discuss whether the trade ministers should go to Geneva at the end of April or beginning of May. Talks are at a stalemate on several fronts, due to European Union´s resistance to meet demands for higher cuts on farm tariffs and to the fact that many developing countries are refusing to enter into serious negotiations on manufactures and services before they see a firm commitment in the farm area. Washington is also under heavy pressure to further reduce its farm subsidies, but maintains it cannot do so before the other countries pare down their tariffs. In Zoellick´s viewpoint, if Lamy presents a plan, developing countries like China, India and Brazil will work together with the United States and other WTO developed countries to clinch a final agreement. |
