Geneva:
Gaps are narrowing in World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks on a global trade pact,
but at too slow a pace, WTO chief Pascal Lamy said on Wednesday. Lamy,
who sees end-2007 as the deadline for a deal, said there were signs the United
States, the European Union, India and other key members were beginning to give
some ground. "I
think that there is a narrowing of differences, although at too slow a pace given
the sort of time constraints that we are hitting," he told journalists. Getting
a trade treaty this year would require accord on a blueprint for the most controversial
issues -- particularly farm and industrial goods -- by the end of July and before
the August holidays at the WTO, diplomats and analysts say. The
United States and the European Union are under pressure to slash farm subsidies
and tariffs, respectively, while big developing countries are being asked to open
up their farm goods and manufacturing markets more. Ministers
from the so-called G4 -- the United States, the EU, India and Brazil -- which
represent a wide range of trade interests, will meet May 17-18 in Brussels with
three further get-togethers planned by the middle of June. At
the same time the pace of negotiations at WTO headquarters in Geneva is picking
up after a long lull. The
Doha round, launched in the Qatari capital in 2001, has already missed a series
of deadlines, but Lamy has warned that missing another could mean the collapse
of the negotiations. By
early next year, the 2008 presidential election will dominate the political agenda
in the United States and there will be little enthusiasm for a complex trade deal. "A
successful outcome to the round is possible, even in the small amount of time
remaining until the end of this year," Lamy told the
WTO''s executive General Council earlier on Wednesday. "(But)
I have been warned governments that if they do not compromise soon, they will
be forced to confront the unpleasant reality of failure," he added.
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