The Cancun round of negotiations for WTO is fast becoming the ‘agriculture round’. Trade Ministers from the World Trade Organisation’s 146 members on Wednesday got ready to enter a bruising battle over the future of global agricultural liberalisation as battle lines were being drawn in the Mexican seaside resort of Cancun. On the one hand were countries like India, China, Brazil and South Africa among others who were battling against trade distortions by the US and the European Union subsidies to their farmers, while on the other were the US and EU themselves, who have been making every attempt to get developing countries to lower tariffs on agriculture products and allow them market access. The G-20 club of nations led by India, Brazil, China and South Africa among others opposing the developed countries pressures on the developing world, gained in strength as its number grew with Egypt joining the group. What is being seen as heartening for India is the fact that as G-20 became G-21, the group also got support from the Cairns group of 18 countries, led by Australia including New Zealand, Uruguay, Paraguay among others. The two groups have zeroed in on common points to push for joining forces for faster reforms by the US and the European Union. According to both groups, the $300 billion annual subsidies to farmers in these countries is the single biggest reason for distorting world trade. The Cairns groups and the Group of 20 want the Cancun meeting to set a firm date for eliminating all forms of export subsidy and big reductions in trade-distorting domestic support. However, they differ over how far poorer countries should have to open their markets. With India and other developing countries gaining confidence, the EU and the US seemed to be on the defensive as far as agriculture issues were concerned. The EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy at a press conference here agreed that cutting of farm subsidies was something they were prepared for, while US trade representative Robert Zoellick said that the WTO ministers could have to meet again early 2004 to resolve differences on these issues. But this is not to say that the US and EU have decided to give up easily to pressure tactics by the developing countries. The US on Wednesday announced a $1.2 million ‘trade-related technical assistance’ package for the least developing countries, tactics that experts called were an attempt to win them over to its side. India and its G-20 group will now have to wait before they celebrate to see if the negotiations take up issues from its draft report on agriculture rather than putting it down to procedural impropriety to circulate an alternative draft other than what has already been circulated by the WTO. WTO Director General Supachai Panitchpakdi defended the stalling of adopting the G-20 draft but left some room for discussions on issues raised by this draft as well as some by the EU and the US. ‘‘We will see how differences on these issues can be resolved’’, Supachai told The Indian Express.
