QUITO, Aug 4 (Agencies): Ecuador will demand the application of the World Trade Organisation (WTO)'s resolution on the access of banana to the European Union (EU), Ecuadorian commercial negotiator Mentor Villagomez said.
"We will continue with legal actions and we hope to exert enough pressure to solve the banana issue," Villagomez told local daily El Comercio yesterday.
Latin American countries and the EU earlier reached a deal to cut banana import tax to 114 euros (179 dollars) per ton by 2016, which failed last Tuesday as wider free trade talks collapsed at a WTO meeting in Geneva.
Latin American countries currently were levied with an import duty of 176 euros (277 US dollars) per ton, while African, Caribbean and Pacific countries, mainly former colonies of European powers, could enter the market tariff-free.
Villagomez urged the EU to observe the international norms of trade."If they don't, they will be sanctioned by being deprived of duty concessions." Villagomez said.
Ecuador, the world's major banana producer and exporter, loses an estimated 201 million dollars per year from the EU's import tariffs. However the application of the WTO's resolution could take about three months.
Meanwhile, WTO Director General Pascal Lamy is visiting India next week to find ways for picking up the threads from last month's failed trade talks in Geneva.
"Lamy would be visiting next week. He is coming here for discussion with the government and industry," Commerce Secretary G K Pillai told reporters in New Delhi.
The WTO chief, who is likely to be in India around August 12 and 13, has expressed interest to talk with the industry.
"I presume his attention would be on industrial sector," he said.
Talk of Lamy's visit to India comes days after the mini-ministerial meeting collapsed on the issue of safeguard for farmers from the developing countries against import surges.
The stand-off in the Geneva meeting was mainly between the US on the one side and India and China on the other.
India had later said that besides China, over 100 developing and least developed countries were backing the cause of poor farmers.
On his return from Geneva, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath too had expressed desire to resume negotiations for opening world trade, which he said should be fair to developing countries.
Sources said Lamy will seek to "brainwash" sections of the Indian industry to accept the proposal of zero-for-zero or zero-for-close to zero opening of specific sectors, including automobiles, textiles and chemicals.
India is strongly opposed to completely throwing open these sectors arguing billions of dollars of investment have been made in these areas and breaking the tariff wall would destroy the infant industries.
They said Lamy would also be visiting national capitals of other key countries to bring them on board for maintaining the momentum to conclude the trade talks.
