Trade ministers seek revive WTO talks at Davos
Source: Reuters
By Laura MacInnis GENEVA, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Some 30 trade ministers will attend talks in Switzerland next week aimed at reviving stalled negotiations to free up global trade, the Swiss government said on Tuesday. U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab, European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson and ministers from India, Brazil and Japan amongst others will meet on Jan. 27 in the Alpine resort of Davos, on the sidelines of the annual World Economic Forum gathering of business and government leaders. "The aim of the meeting is ... to take stock on (a) ministerial level and exchange ideas on the road ahead and how to advance the process of the Doha round negotiations," the Economy Ministry said in a statement. Launched in 2001, the World Trade Organisation's Doha round aims to lower obstacles to trade worldwide -- with most benefits expected to accrue to developing countries -- but deep divisions over agriculture caused the talks to break down last July. Ministers from the EU, United States, Brazil and Japan have since held bilateral meetings, and technical discussions have resumed in Geneva, but until now there have been no high-level talks between groups of major players. WTO chief Pascal Lamy has said the Davos session will likely focus on issues such as setting a schedule for future talks, and would not delve into the substance of an agreement. British Prime Minister Tony Blair, echoing comments last week from Schwab, said on Tuesday he was "more optimistic" that a WTO deal could be rescued. "I am more optimistic than I was because I think there is an appreciation of how important this is," he told a regular news conference in London. "We will continue working at it very closely ... because the next few weeks will be particularly crucial," he added. Many observers fear that without a breakthrough soon the WTO negotiations could finally collapse or at the very least face years of delay. U.S. President George W. Bush loses his "fast-track" powers to negotiate trade deals at the end of June and without them it becomes nearly impossible for the United States to reach trade deals. Officials say Bush needs progress in the round to have any hope of getting the powers renewed by the Democratic-controlled Congress. Political wrangling ahead of the 2008 U.S. presidential election and ongoing debate over future European farm reform would further complicate efforts to reach a deal.
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