NEW DELHI: India is unlikely to yield to a fresh effort by the developed countries to push for greater concessions by the larger emerging economies to salvage the World Trade Organisation's Doha Round of global trade talks.
WTO Director General Pascal Lamy told ET that some developing countries now expect the larger emerging economies, including India, to compete on a level playing field. "The question is whether emerging countries are rich, developing countries or poor, developed countries, which will determine the future course of events," he said.
The Doha Round, launched in November 2001 in Qatar's capital city, has been deadlocked since July 2008 over the level of protection to be given to poor farmers against import surges and the debate whether tariff elimination in some sectors should be mandatory or voluntary. With the US leading the chorus to demand further concessions from countries like India, China and Brazil, which will have to eliminate tariffs on some products for the round to progress, the talks have been stalled.
GK Pillai, former commerce secretary who led India at the WTO talks between 2005 and 2008, said there was little possibility of India giving in to the fresh demands. "Nobody (in India) is going to agree to it. We have about 40% of the world's malnourished children in India and account for less than 2% of world trade. We cannot be asked to give more while developed countries have a free ride."
Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma had also said categorically at a programme attended by Lamy earlier this week, "Dilution of the Doha agenda can't be accepted."
The minister had explained, "When the Doha development round was launched in 2001, it was clear that the development dimension has to be addressed and developing countries need to be given better access to markets. This course can't be changed."
Lamy, however, told ET that the Doha Round has a three-lane regime, as opposed to the two-lane regime that existed in GATT ( General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade), which preceded the WTO. He said the framework already comprises separate regimes for the developed countries, emerging developing countries and poor developing countries. "What is needed is not a categorisation debate but a transactional debate. Who exactly does what and where," he added.
Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com