HONG KONG, 16 December 2005 — It was the European Union vs. the Rest of the World as global trade talks remained deadlocked yesterday, with the EU defending itself from a barrage of criticism that its refusal to further open its farming markets threatened to torpedo the entire World Trade Organization meeting.
Poor nations say that as a part of a global free-trade deal, the EU, US and other rich nations must cut their farm subsidies and tariffs that block developing countries’ access to those lucrative markets.
Chile’s foreign minister, Ignacio Walker, blasted the EU’s farm subsidy program, which critics say totals up to $110 billion (92 billion euros) a year. Walker said that works out to about $2 a day for each cow. “So many poor people wish they would be at least as well off as an EU cow,” Walker said.
But European nations say they have already offered generous cuts in agricultural programs, including an average cut 46 percent on farm tariffs, and that developing countries, particularly Brazil, India and China, need to counter with offers to lower their trade barriers to services and manufactured goods. The EU says its farm support program pays out 43.7 billion euros ($52.2 billion). “The EU has presented a complete agricultural package,” said Elena Espinosa, Spain’s agricultural minister. “What did the others present? Nothing, nothing, nothing.”
Delegates suggested yesterday that there was some incremental progress during the third day of six-day talks, but didn’t offer specifics. “The dynamics are changing,” said an Indian trade official who asked not to be named due to the sensitive nature of the talks. “We had a very good meeting in the morning. There is a desire to move forward,” said Keith Rockwell, the chief WTO spokesman.
Caribbean and African banana producers, however, benefit from the EU’s current system of tariffs and quotas, which favors them over large-scale growers in Latin American, who claim the system is unfair. The smaller producers say eliminating those they risk getting squeezed out of the market.
“We hope to try and find an agreeable solution before Sunday,” Honduras’ WTO Ambassador Dacio Castillo told The Associated Press. “Otherwise it’s going to be difficult to accept whatever will be the outcome of this meeting.”
In other development, US trade chief Rob Portman said that Washington is willing to provide duty and quota-free access for cotton produced in West Africa, but was immediately criticized by the EU and campaign groups for offering the wrong solution to African producers’ needs.
In another development, the tiny pacific kingdom of Tonga was admitted as the 150th member of the WTO yesterday but critics said tough membership terms would put the country’s fragile economy at risk. WTO chief Pascal Lamy said the approval of Tonga’s membership by the global body’s ministerial conference here was “truly significant and welcome.” Adding a new player, however small, would make the WTO more representative, Lamy told the conference.
