Nath: Forward march

New Delhi, May 10: India and the US have agreed to work together to resolve the issues regarding the controversial farm subsidy and market access for industrial goods and services.

An official statement on the talks between commerce and industry minister Kamal Nath and US trade representative Susan Schwab said, “India and the US agreed to begin technical work with the objective of building consensus among WTO membership.”

Nath and Schwab agreed that the Doha round of talks should be concluded before the end of the year as rising food and fuel prices had sent many countries into financial turmoil.

Nath said the two countries must aim for market access for each other, but reiterated India’s concerns, particularly about agriculture. “As India engages with the global economy more and more it is essential that we strengthen the rule-based multilateral trading system,” he said.

WTO talks are yet to be concluded, as developing and developed countries have been unable to resolve differences on farm subsidies and market access for industrial goods. India and other developing countries have put pressure on the US to cut the subsidies it pays to its farmers.

On the other hand, Washington said it wanted countries like India to ease restrictions on imports of farm products and other goods.

Indian and US leaders will meet again in Washington on June 11.

“It is very important that we close this round of talks as soon as possible. Some consensus has to develop by June if things have to move forward,” Nath said.

Farm analyst Devinder Sharma said “India is looking for a face-saver and the only bottleneck is to what extent will the US give in. If the US agrees to cut trade-distorting agriculture subsidies to less than $13 billion or $14 billion, the deal will be through. Either way, it will not mean any real cut in trade-distorting subsidies. America’s real trade distorting subsidies are at $11 billion now.”

Nath said the issues were at the heart of the Doha round’s development and needed to be addressed “ambitiously”.

Agriculture negotiations pose the greatest challenges as they involve complex issues of subsidies and sensitivities on market access, especially in developing countries, with respect to food security and livelihoods of poor farmers.

Nath said India would not accept any constraints or restrictions on its ability to provide assistance to its fishermen, as it is a question of their livelihood.

The proposal to incorporate disclosure of use of genetic material and/or traditional knowledge on patent applications is also a critical development issue which has the support of most WTO members, Nath told Schwab.

The issue needed to be addressed, he added.