Leaving It Up to Ministers

Geneva Key members of the World Trade Organization yesterday sharply differed over what constitutes the level of political "ambition" in the Doha Development Agenda modalities for agriculture and market-opening for industrials challenging whether "real cuts" and "new market access" are part of the overall mandate, WTD was told (see related report this issue).

WTO chief Pascal Lamy who also heads the Doha Trade Negotiations Committee clarified his pronouncement earlier in the week that modalities will have to yield real cuts and new market access or "new trade flows." He told envoys yesterday he was only reflecting on the commitment to achieve "increased opportunities of the multilateral trading system" contained in "paragraph 2" of the 2001 Doha mandate and echoing the sum and substance of what is required to be accomplished in the modalities.

Mr. Lamy explained his remarks at a "green room" meeting before heading off to Brussels to address the Africa/Caribbean/Pacific group of nations.

During the "green room" meeting in which he circulated a list of issues on agriculture and nonagricultural market access to be discussed by ministers later in the week some industrialized members pointed out that they are not required to achieve real cuts, trade diplomats said.

Trade envoys interpret political "ambition" from their own national perspectives which often differ one from another, trade diplomats said. Objections were expressed by some members that the 2001 mandate did not envision "new market access" or new trade flows. But some farm exporting nations spoke of the need for "substantial" results in agriculture including real cuts in trade distorting domestic subsidies and substantial market opening.

India along with some other developing countries drove home the need for "certainty" in the use of flexibilities and Special and Differential Treatment provisions, trade diplomats said.

The list of issues circulated yesterday covered all the core issues in the three pillars of agriculture and nonagricultural market access.