By Chris Jones - 30th January 2006
Europe should be optimistic of a successful outcome for the Doha round of world trade negotiations after further talks in Davos last week, France’s trade minister said on Monday.
Christine Lagarde told business leaders in Brussels that the atmosphere in the Swiss ski resort was noticeably less hostile than in Hong Kong, where representatives from the 150 WTO members met last December.
Then, the EU was widely blamed for not offering further concessions on agricultural market access as EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson stood firm in his demands for more action on goods and services.
But the latest round of talks, at the world economic forum, appear to have moved Europe closer to agreement with its main trading partners, Lagarde suggested.
Lagarde welcomed in particular the agreement at Davos to move ahead on both agriculture and services “in parallel”.
But she warned that there was still more movement needed, in particular by the developing countries such as India and Brazil, who have emerged as major powers at the talks.
“We need to avoid a ‘Yalta of agriculture’, where global policy is decided by the US and Brazil, based on farm issues alone, and to the detriment of Europe and Africa,” she said.
“There needs to be a greater understanding that these talks are not simply about agriculture, and not just about the developed world versus the developing world.”
“Not all developing countries have the same agenda. Ghana, for example, has a GDP per capita of $320; Brazil’s is $3,100, or ten times as much. Brazil is a major agricultural producer, other countries are not.”
“These differences obviously affect their negotiating positions. The developing nations in the G20 group, for example, all have very different agendas.”
The G20 group, dominated by Brazil and India, also includes countries as diverse as South Africa, Pakistan, Venezuela, Thailand and Cuba, and as such should not be treated as one homgenous group, Lagarde argues.
“While it is right, perhaps, not to ask the least-developed countries for anything in return for greater access to our markets, we can also justifiably call for more liberalisation from some of the more developed nations.”
She added that “south-south liberalisation”- the opening up of markets between less developed countries – was also necessary for a lasting deal.
But Lagarde said that there were signs that the “posturing” of Hong Kong was no longer on the agenda, and that other countries were more willing to get down to proper negotiations.
The key for Europe will be to find more allies to support its stance on a more balanced package of market liberalisation measures, Lagarde said.
“We need to communicate our position more clearly, but not aggressively,” she said. “The main threat to Europe is isolation.”
Ministers are hoping for an agreement on opening up global trade to boost jobs and growth by the end of April.
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