World trade talks hit environment snag

Geneva, Aug 24: Diplomats racing to shape a plan to clinch a new world trade pact by the end of next year ran into trouble on Saturday over how far it should be linked to global agreements on protecting the environment.
The problem had been looming for months and emerged as officials of the World Trade Organization tried to forge a compromise on the central issue of agriculture out of conflicting proposals from rich and poor countries.

With under three weeks left before ministers from the body's 146 member states meet in Cancun, Mexico, other major differences remain on cutting tariffs on goods, special treatment for developing countries and rules for services.

"We'll get to Cancun alright, but it's still far from obvious how much we'll be able to achieve there," said one European envoy after the Saturday meeting.

In the Mexican resort town on the Caribbean coast, trade ministers are supposed to firm up the program for the second half of the WTO's current Doha Round of talks and steer it toward a wide-ranging agreement by the end of next year.

The latest problem, although seemingly procedural, masks wider disagreement on the environment between a group of mainly rich countries led by the European Union, and emerging economies like Malaysia, India, Egypt and China.

Poorer countries fear the big powers are aiming for tough rules on environmental standards in industry and agriculture to provide a WTO-sanctioned excuse to keep out cheap imports.

Saturday's impasse was over whether officials from bodies overseeing implementation of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) should have a permanent presence at special WTO sessions discussing links between trade and the environment.

The 15-nation EU -- whose backers include the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, Switzerland, Norway and Chile -- wants MEA officials, and others from inter-governmental environmental bodies, to have a standing invitation.

The emerging economy group argues that this would in effect give MEA officials observer status -- and a strong influence -- in the WTO, a development they have until now resisted.

Environmental issues have until now been on the backburner in the Doha Round, launched in the Qatari capital at the end of 2001 and due to wrap up with a new global trade accord by January 1, 2005.

But they played a key role in the collapse in 1999 of efforts to get a new round started. Bureau Report