HK one more step along the way
But critics say lack of genuine concessions by the US is making a mockery of talks
A debate yesterday between the deputy head of the WTO and one of the organisation's harshest critics suggested the fault lines running through the Sixth Ministerial Conference have little chance of diminishing as the week progresses.
But at least the two sides could agree on the biggest stumbling block: trade-distorting agricultural subsidies.
WTO deputy director-general Alejandro Jara lamented the unwillingness of wealthy nations 'to bite the bullet' on agricultural subsidies and put the current round of talks back on track.
According to Walden Bello, an executive at Bangkok-based think-tank Focus on the Global South, the lack of genuine concessions on agriculture by the US and the European Union make a mockery of the Doha Development Round and typifies the 'defensive warfare' that characterises WTO negotiations.
Mr Jara responded by trying to put a brave face on the impasse, arguing that Hong Kong represented 'one more step' along the way to 'global economic development'. He said the conference could be deemed a success if it mapped out parameters for further negotiations to be completed by the end of next year.
That was not a view shared by Mr Bello.
'What is at stake here in Hong Kong is the institutional survival of the WTO,' he said. 'Following two major failures [in Seattle and Cancun] there appears to be little change in the rich nations' attitude towards WTO negotiations. Countries are focused only on defending their own interests rather than putting forward positive proposals that could help developing nations.'
Mr Bello accused rich countries of trying to trick poor countries into accepting a 'development package' in Hong Kong that would allow the talks to progress while temporarily shelving the most difficult agriculture issues.
He said rich country proposals promising least developed countries (LDCs) duty and quota-free access to their markets, such as the one recently advanced by Japan, would have little practical effect due to strong opposition by the US. The same, he said, was true of trade proposals pledged at the G8 summit in Gleneagles, Scotland in July.
'The [LDCs] are not going to fall for this - and why should they when the US is showing no movement on cotton subsidies that would have a real and immediate impact on farmers in the developing world?' he said.
The US cotton lobby, whose members produce more cotton than any other country bar China, is one of Washington's most powerful agricultural groupings.
Mr Jara acknowledged that 'it has never been easy for governments to take a lot of money away from the very few', but argued that agricultural reform was inevitable and just required more time.
'There are also gains to be made in goods and services which would offset any loss in agriculture, but it takes time to measure and evaluate [the trade-offs],' he said.
