Brussels, 05/07/2006 (Agence Europe) - European and Japanese employers (UNICE and Keidanren) requested members of the WTO on 5 July to demonstrate “the political leadership needed to achieve successful and ambitious results in the negotiations before the end of 2006” in the Doha Round, following the failure of the ministerial last week in Geneva (EUROPE 9224 and 9225). The two organisations, as the voice of business of two of the largest economies in the world, affirmed in a press release that, “Further postponement would seriously impact all WTO members. It is time to find common ground for agreement”. They also underlined the need to obtain “significant commercial opportunities in non-agricultural market access and services”. Negotiations on services have to reach the same level of ambition as those in other sectors, which require, “significantly improve offers”, explain the two organisations, which also want, “an ambitious and binding Trade Facilitation Agreement”. In agriculture, progress by all partners is of crucial importance to ensure success of the Round, they assert. UNICE and Keidanren indicate that they support special and differential treatment for developing countries “that truly need it” but warned that this treatment, “should not serve as an excuse to negotiate an OECE-only round in which the merging counties contribute little or nothing”.