New negotiating texts aimed at pushing forward global trade talks lack balance and should have offered more progress in services, an official at the European Union's executive branch said on Friday.
Earlier this month, World Trade Organisation (WTO) mediators sought to advance long-running trade talks by issuing revised drafts for agriculture, industry and services.
While the revised farm and industry drafts made no changes to existing proposals for headline cuts in tariffs and subsidies, they did narrow the gaps on many technical issues, reflecting intense negotiations over the past six months.
For the European Commission, which negotiates foreign trade on behalf of the EU's 27 governments, the revised farm text looked far better than those for industry and services.
"The EU believes that the necessary balance between the NAMA (non-agricultural market access) and the Agri texts has not been found," the European Commission official said. "The EU would also have hoped for more from the services text, which does not contain guidance for setting the level of ambition of the services negotiations." Much of the work in the talks has turned on how both rich and poor countries can shield sensitive farm products from excessive imports, and how developing countries can protect fledgling industries from the full force of competition.
European farmers, notably from France and Ireland, are concerned about the impact of proposed subsidy cuts on their businesses. Earlier this week, Irish Agriculture Minister Mary Coughlan criticised the latest farm text. On Friday an Irish Farmers Association official on Friday told Reuters: "It's madness. It seems as though the agriculture deal is done and dusted."
"But I can tell you one thing, it's far from over." The WTO negotiations are due to be discussed separately by EU farm and EU foreign ministers on Monday. Diplomats and officials in Brussels say France has toned down its complaints about the scope of the concessions given by the Commission.
"I would not say they are subdued, but they are certainly a lot more conciliatory," one diplomat close to the talks said. WTO ministers are keen to conclude the round this year before a new US administration takes office and focuses on settling into Washington. "All parts of this negotiation must move forward in concert. It is absolutely crucial now that the texts move forward rapidly and in a way that reflects the mainstream views of the WTO membership," the Commission official said.
"The EU believes that a small minority should not be in command of the agenda of the DDA (Doha Development Agenda) for the whole membership," he said, without elaborating. The Commission official confirmed that EU trade chief Peter Mandelson had outlined the EU's views in telephone call with his US counterpart Susan Schwab earlier this week. Industry officials have spoken about a potential meeting between Mandelson and Schwab on March 17 followed by a broader meeting of trade ministers a few days later in Geneva, but the official said he could not confirm this.
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