Brussels, 20/03/2006 (Agence Europe) - At France's request, European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson brought EU Foreign Ministers, meeting in Brussels on Monday, up to date on recent developments in Doha negotiations on trade liberalisation, in particular on the outcome of the meeting on 10 and 11 March in London of G-6 Trade Ministers (European Union, United States, Brazil, India, Australia and Japan) (see EUROPE 9150). Mr Mandelson said that the positive outcome of more than two months of intense post-Hong Kong negotiations (December 2005) was that several of the EU's partners at the WTO had realised that the success or failure of the round did not depend only on the European position on the agriculture section. In was in this context that in early March the G-6 discussed the key questions (access to the agricultural and manufactured goods market - NAMA - in particular). For the Trade Commissioner, the real aims of the large emerging countries - led by Brazil and India and which are consistently unwilling to reduce their Customs duties on NAMA goods unless developed countries make concessions in agriculture (market access for the EU, domestic support for the United States) - had now to be tested. While remaining inflexible in their demands to gain more from their developed partners in the agricultural area in return for what they were ready to offer on industrial goods, Brazil and India feared China's ability to take greatest advantage of a lowering of tariffs on NAMAs). Brasilia's and New Delhi's reticence may currently be blocking the progress of the talks, when the 149 WTO member states had given themselves until 30 April to decide on the arrangements (figures and other provisions) of the negotiations on the agricultural section and NAMAs, but the Commission strategy remained unchanged, assured Mr Mandelson: examining as closely as possible the possibilities for developed countries and large emerging countries to make concessions. The London meeting having shown that the “step-by-step approach doesn't work”, Mr Mandelson proposed intensifying “discreet contacts” with main partners. In this context, the Trade Commissioner - who remains convinced that putting off an agreement and lowering the aims will not guarantee its conclusion in the long run - will, during a ten-day visit to South America (from 25 March), meet the main leaders of the G-20 (the group of emerging countries at the WTO), the Chilean Foreign Minister Ignacio Walker, his Brazilian counterpart Celso Amorim and the Argentine Secretary of State for Trade Alfredo Vicente Chiaradia. Finally, while, on the initiative of France, Agriculture Ministers from 13 Member States sent a new warning to European negotiators at the WTO (see EUROPE 9154), Mr Mandelson once again stressed the need for the EU to present a “united front” at this crucial time in the negotiations.