Geneva, 30/11/2009 (Agence Europe) - On the first day of the 7th WTO ministerial conference, on Monday 30 November in Geneva, opinions are unanimous: - the conclusion of the multilateral Doha Round talks on liberalisation of global trade constitutes an inevitable answer for addressing the global economic crisis. On Monday, all trade ministers addressing the plenary after their Chilean counterpart, Andres Velasco, who chaired the conference, and WTO Director General Pascal Lamy, reaffirmed the commitment taken last year by the G-8 and the forum of major economies to do everything possible to conclude the Round by end 2010. The speeches by the representatives of the main actors of the Round - the European Union, the USA, Brazil, China and India - have still to be heard and opinions seem still to differ considerably. The road to a final agreement therefore seems tortuous. The last speech by Catherine Ashton, in her capacity as European trade commissioner, was eloquent. Although there is still the commitment to conclude the Round, the conviction that success is near at hand has been shaken.
“We must conclude the Round at all cost”, Ms Ashton stressed on Monday, thus reformulating the message by the Chilean minister Velasco, who, when opening the work, had described conclusion of the Doha Round as a “primordial objective” for the global economy and development but also for the credibility of the WTO and the stability of the multilateral trade system. “However, I believe that our progress has been too slow to conclude in 2010”, the future EU high representative said, highly lucid during the last hours of her current mandate. As the international conference on climate change in Copenhagen draws near, Ms Ashton, followed by Swedish Trade Minister Ewa Björling, also called for liberalisation of trade in environmental goods, which are the subject of a chapter in the Doha negotiations. Reducing customs duties on environmental goods and services to zero, as well as on green technology, is the best contribution that can be made to trade policy to contribute to the fight against climate change, the commissioner said. In a message true to her country's free trade tradition, Ms Björling sounded a note of caution saying: “Climate must not be the pretext for setting up protectionist barriers”.
Earlier, the Swedish minister had also stressed the need for an agreement in 2010, saying: “This will be a strong signal for the world economy and the central role of the WTO”. “It is important to give a coordinated response to the crisis. We must conclude Doha in the short term. That is the best thing we can do”, the Swiss trade minister, Doris Leuthard added, going on to affirm the commitment in Bern to “do everything possible to conclude the Round despite resistance by [her] country” - resistance, especially from the agricultural world, as demonstrated by the anti-globalisation and anti-WTO activist demonstrations which degenerated in the centre of Geneva the day before the conference. The future Swiss president, the country that leads the G-10, the group of agricultural importing countries alongside South Korea, Japan and Norway, nonetheless stated its optimism that the agricultural mediator at the WTO, New Zealand Ambassador David Walker, will manage to reduce differences on the sensitive chapter agriculture. “The time has come to move forward. We understand the political sensitivities. For us, it is agriculture”, admitted Canada's Trade Minister Stockwell Day. Before expressing optimism, however, he said: “I think it is possible. We need determination. And I think we have it”.
However, when taking the floor, US Trade Representative Ron Kirk, Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim and Indian Trade Minister Anand Sharma put cold water on the hope of an agreement in 2010, as the differences regarding the approach are so great. “We need a solid result of the Doha Round, to open markets and create new opportunities in agriculture, in industry and services. The United States has undertaken to reach this target. I believe success is possible in 2010”, explained Kirk of the US, before putting pressure on the emerging economies (Argentina, Brazil, China, India and economies of the ASEAN zone) to open up their markets more. “We await signs of opening from the other members”, he stressed. In return, Mr Kirk came up against resistance from Brazil and India. “Conclusion of the Round cannot be based on new unilateral concessions by developing countries”, Amorim of Brazil said, proud to announce that his country will guarantee access to the free market for duties and quotas to the less advanced countries mid 2010. “We cannot dilute the development objective. To conclude the Round, we must find solutions to the essential issues such as the special safeguard mechanism for the agriculture of developing countries, cotton, the erosion of preferences, special and differentiated treatment”, went on Sharma of India, before adding in a faintly veiled message addressed to Washington: “The requests for additional concessions from developing countries must be tempered”. Calling for compromises found in 2008 to be undone, Chen Denming of China was more optimistic saying: “For 60 years now, free trade has always navigated in choppy waters. We must keep our faith”. (E.H./transl.jl)