Brussels, 04/12/2008 (Agence Europe) - WTO director, Pascal Lamy who has been pursuing negotiations everywhere with Member States over the past two weeks, has now decided to organize a ministerial meeting before mid-December to validate a compromise on global trade liberalisation modalities in agriculture and industrial products (NAMA). This will subsequently complete the Doha Round launched in 2001. Despite persistent disagreements on certain dossiers, Mr Lamy has already requested trade ministers from around thirty countries to prepare for Geneva on 13-15 December. One source close to Mr Lamy said that the meeting may start two days earlier on 11-12 December for the several main trade powers: Australia, Brazil, China, US, India, Japan and the EU, before being extended to countries representing the main negotiating groups at the WTO (agricultural importing countries from the G10, exporting agricultural countries from the Cairns group, the Friends of Special Products from the G33, G90 developing countries, ACP countries and less advanced countries etc). the Head of the WTO is hoping to centre ministerial talks on the progress accomplished at Geneva during the last two weeks. Revised compromise texts prepared by the Heads of the negotiating teams, Crawford Falconer in agriculture and Luzius Wasescha for NAMA, are expected to be submitted at the end of the week. A source lose to the dossier said that the US and India have reduced their differences on the thorny question of the special safeguard mechanism for agriculture in developing countries but this issue, similarly with sensitive products, requires a definitive solution at ministerial level. The question of cotton, directly negotiated by Mr Lamy, will again be tackled next week after a meeting last weekend with C4 countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Chad). NAMA: a convergence of views is needed on the sectoral agreements, which aim to significantly reduce or eradicate tariffs for 14 industrial sectors, such as cars, chemical products, machines, electronics and textiles. While the decision, which Mr Lamy is due to present this weekend, eyes remain centred on the US, China and India, whose willingness to conclude talks remains in some doubt. The EU and Brazil indicated on 1 December that they support holding a ministerial meeting. (E.H./trans/rh)