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Roundup: Commonwealth Urges Rich Nations to Reduce Farm Subsidies

Posted on: Sunday, 27 November 2005, 09:00 CST

Roundup: Commonwealth urges rich nations to reduce farm subsidies

ROME, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- Commonwealth nations called on the European Union Saturday to make concessions over its system of agriculture subsidies to salvage global free trade talks due to take place in Hong Kong next month.

In a 17-point "Valletta Statement on Multilateral Trade," the 53- nation Commonwealth piled pressure on the EU to reduce its agriculture subsidies that poor countries complain are depriving their farmers of chances, according to reports reaching here from Valletta, Malta's capital.

Leaders of the 53 countries, mostly former British colonies, started in Valletta a three-day meeting on Friday to address global trade, among other topics.

The organization, which represents a third of the world's population and a fifth of global trade, called on rich countries to make concessions on agriculture and market access.

In the statement published after a day of private meetings of leaders, Commonwealth nations criticized the poor level of ambition resulting from the latest round of Doha talks, saying developing countries have not "benefited fully from past multilateral trade renegotiations."

The statement raised a list of demands for participants of the WTO's Hong Kong summit starting on Dec. 13, saying they were committed to injecting "urgency into the work of negotiators at the WTO."

"We note the offer on agriculture made by the United States of America and express the hope that the European Union and others who maintain high levels of agriculture protection respond in the same spirit," it said.

In the statement, Commonwealth nations also called for a WTO agreement on "the elimination of all forms of export subsidies by 2010."

The WTO Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong next month, part of the WTO's current Doha round of trade talks launched in 2001, is at the risk of failure as poor nations demand further free farm trade and rich countries, first of all the EU and the US, insist on lower duties on industrial goods and free trade in services.

"Commonwealth countries want to be heard in Brussels, in Geneva and particularly in Hong Kong," said the organization's Secretary General Don McKinnon.

Leaders of Commonwealth's developing countries raised the issue of overcoming the huge disparities in member nations' size and wealth.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz insisted on a common ground in trade despite wide differences between rich nations like Britain and Canada, the developing countries in South Asia, and tiny states like Tuvalu with only 11,000 people, the reports said.

"Our time today and tomorrow will be to come to some common ground," he told a news conference prior to the meeting.

Readmitted to its first Commonwealth summit since being suspended in 1999 after General Pervez Musharraf seized power, Pakistan said it will push for a broad liberalization deal at December's World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks in Hong Kong.

But that will bring Pakistan into conflict with Britain, Malta and Cyprus, the three commonwealth nations which are also European Union members clinging to farm subsidies.

Aziz said the talks were useful despite the political divisions.

"We need to have a road map and a timetable for transition from where we are to a more free and open market," Aziz was quoted as saying. "The advantage of discussing this at the heads of government level means we can flush out principles and try to prepare before we go into the Hong Kong round."

The Commonwealth summit is to wrap up on Sunday with a final communique that is also expected to touch on terrorism and illegal migration.

Source: Xinhua News Agency - CEIS

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