Trading powers reel from collapse of crucial talks
Thursday, 31 July 2008
GENEVA, July 30 (Agencies): The collapse of marathon negotiations for a global trade pact left world powers reeling today after ministers quit emotional talks without a deal over deadlock between India and the United States.
"It's extremely difficult to find words to express the disappointment," said EU Commissioner Mariann Fischer-Boel in an address as top delegates filed one by one before reporters to review the wreckage of nine days of talks.
"It is a failure with wider consequences than we have seen before," she said, her voice breaking.
Several delegates Tuesday hoped for further moves to salvage the negotiating process in light of what had been accomplished in trade talks so far. But for the moment, momentum ground to a halt.
"There is no use beating around the bush, this meeting has collapsed, members have simply not been able to bridge their differences," the World Trade Organisation's Director-General Pascal Lamy told journalists.
Ministers had struggled for more than a week to reach consensus on subsidy levels and import tariffs for a new deal under the WTO's Doha round, which has repeatedly foundered since its launch seven years ago.
US Trade Representative Susan Schwab earlier said that hopes for a breakthrough had been dashed.
"The package that we were able to negotiate and agree on... is not going to carry the day," she told reporters as she left a meeting of key trading powers, referring to an earlier breakthrough on a deal proposed by Lamy.
Delegates said negotiations stumbled on proposals for so-called SSM measures to protect poor farmers that would have imposed a special tariff on certain agricultural goods in the event of an import surge or price fall.
The world's economic superpower, the United States, and India, one of the world's biggest emerging economies, were sharply divided over the SSM-the special safeguard mechanism.
European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said it was "heartbreaking" that efforts collapsed due to one single element.
"Of all the failures they could have tripped up on... (the SSM) trade restraint measure and a small gap in numbers managing to provoke this failure is... absolutely heartbreaking," he told reporters after talks broke down.
Mandelson said the collapse was a "collective failure."
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, a leading negotiator at the talks, said he was "very disappointed that we were not able to close the round," but insisted that game was not over yet.
Meanwhile, Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming said yesterday that he felt "very disappointed and regrettable" at the failure of crucial WTO talks aimed to make a breakthrough in the Doha round.
"We, along with the other participating countries, feel very disappointed and regrettable," Chen said in a statement, following the breakup of negotiations among key WTO ministers.
Chen said the collapse of the nine-day negotiations was caused by the "inability of two countries to bridge the gap between their positions on special safeguard triggering levels." But he did not name the two countries.
Trade sources said the dispute was between the United States and India, both of whom were facing the pressure of general elections.
The two countries could not agree on the issue of SSM (special safeguard mechanism), which allows developing countries to raise farm tariffs if imports surge, thus protecting the interests of poor farmers.
The United States also refused to talk about cotton subsidies, one major concern for poor cotton farmers in African countries.
"China has fully demonstrated flexibilities and constructiveness, and sincerely hoped to reach a successful Doha Round through working together with other members," Chen said.
He said China had made major compromises and concessions on issues such as OTDS (overall trade-distorting domestic support) reduction for developed members, sensitive products, SSG (special safeguard) and ACC (anti-concentration clause).
At the signalling conference for services, China also expressed willingness to further open its market in some key sectors.
"However, just as we were approaching the final point, some minor coefficients failed all our efforts," Chen said.
The minister said that he did not want to blame the ministers concerned.
He urged WTO members to get fully prepared for the consequences.
China would like to enhance in particular the mutually- beneficial cooperation with developing countries, including the LDCs (least developed countries) and SVEs (small and vulnerable economies), and to jointly promote further prosperity of the world, he added.
"It's extremely difficult to find words to express the disappointment," said EU Commissioner Mariann Fischer-Boel in an address as top delegates filed one by one before reporters to review the wreckage of nine days of talks.
"It is a failure with wider consequences than we have seen before," she said, her voice breaking.
Several delegates Tuesday hoped for further moves to salvage the negotiating process in light of what had been accomplished in trade talks so far. But for the moment, momentum ground to a halt.
"There is no use beating around the bush, this meeting has collapsed, members have simply not been able to bridge their differences," the World Trade Organisation's Director-General Pascal Lamy told journalists.
Ministers had struggled for more than a week to reach consensus on subsidy levels and import tariffs for a new deal under the WTO's Doha round, which has repeatedly foundered since its launch seven years ago.
US Trade Representative Susan Schwab earlier said that hopes for a breakthrough had been dashed.
"The package that we were able to negotiate and agree on... is not going to carry the day," she told reporters as she left a meeting of key trading powers, referring to an earlier breakthrough on a deal proposed by Lamy.
Delegates said negotiations stumbled on proposals for so-called SSM measures to protect poor farmers that would have imposed a special tariff on certain agricultural goods in the event of an import surge or price fall.
The world's economic superpower, the United States, and India, one of the world's biggest emerging economies, were sharply divided over the SSM-the special safeguard mechanism.
European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said it was "heartbreaking" that efforts collapsed due to one single element.
"Of all the failures they could have tripped up on... (the SSM) trade restraint measure and a small gap in numbers managing to provoke this failure is... absolutely heartbreaking," he told reporters after talks broke down.
Mandelson said the collapse was a "collective failure."
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, a leading negotiator at the talks, said he was "very disappointed that we were not able to close the round," but insisted that game was not over yet.
Meanwhile, Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming said yesterday that he felt "very disappointed and regrettable" at the failure of crucial WTO talks aimed to make a breakthrough in the Doha round.
"We, along with the other participating countries, feel very disappointed and regrettable," Chen said in a statement, following the breakup of negotiations among key WTO ministers.
Chen said the collapse of the nine-day negotiations was caused by the "inability of two countries to bridge the gap between their positions on special safeguard triggering levels." But he did not name the two countries.
Trade sources said the dispute was between the United States and India, both of whom were facing the pressure of general elections.
The two countries could not agree on the issue of SSM (special safeguard mechanism), which allows developing countries to raise farm tariffs if imports surge, thus protecting the interests of poor farmers.
The United States also refused to talk about cotton subsidies, one major concern for poor cotton farmers in African countries.
"China has fully demonstrated flexibilities and constructiveness, and sincerely hoped to reach a successful Doha Round through working together with other members," Chen said.
He said China had made major compromises and concessions on issues such as OTDS (overall trade-distorting domestic support) reduction for developed members, sensitive products, SSG (special safeguard) and ACC (anti-concentration clause).
At the signalling conference for services, China also expressed willingness to further open its market in some key sectors.
"However, just as we were approaching the final point, some minor coefficients failed all our efforts," Chen said.
The minister said that he did not want to blame the ministers concerned.
He urged WTO members to get fully prepared for the consequences.
China would like to enhance in particular the mutually- beneficial cooperation with developing countries, including the LDCs (least developed countries) and SVEs (small and vulnerable economies), and to jointly promote further prosperity of the world, he added.