The Hindu Business Line : Breakthrough in farm talks vital for WTO success: Menon

India's stance
Market access openings for agri products without adequate safeguards not possible.
The mandate and the work programme set down cannot be changed now.

Kolkata , May 6

Taking stock of India's position post the Hong Kong Ministerial, especially with regard to safeguarding of interest in agriculture and market access openings, Mr S.N. Menon, Union Commerce Secretary, said "India wants a successful Doha Round of trade talks which will create an international air of optimism for Rules-based trading."

If a breakthrough in talks was not achieved by mid-July, the Doha Round may fail, he cautioned.

Speaking at an interactive session organised by The Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BNCCI), Mr Menon said the current talks had reached a deadlock, and were, therefore, more complicated.

Seeking collective recognition of the issues at hand in letter and spirit, he said on-going multilateral negotiations over agricultural subsidies and market access as well as over NAMA (Non-Agricultural Market Access), special products and services (particularly Mode 4 issues involving movement of professionals) had to be concluded by mid-July for a successful conclusion of the Round by end 2006.

Pointing out that the US proposal on special products was totally unacceptable to India, he said the kind of papers that had come to the negotiating table were not encouraging at all for the Round. Calling for an element of realism, given the fact that the US and EU are the major players in global trade, he said the Indian position on domestic support to agriculture and market access issues had been amply clarified.

Citing food security and the need to protect the Indian farmer as being uppermost, Mr Menon said market access openings for agri products without adequate safeguards was not possible. And with regard to NAMA, he said the Indian position had been unwavering, and the mandate and the work programme set down could not be changed now.

Pointing out that the overall picture was not encouraging from the point of view of G-20 nations, he said the issues on agriculture had to be finalised by mid-June.