 
 
 
 
 
 
|
|
|
|
11 July 2004
|
Sunday
|
22 Jamadi-ul-Awwal 1425
|
G-90 moot aimed at resuming dialogue: Doha Round
By Mubarak Zeb Khan
ISLAMABAD, July 10: The G-90 trade ministers are scheduled to meet in the Mauritius on Tuesday to work out a framework of modalities to facilitate the resumption of dialogue on Doha Development Agenda (DHA).
Official sources told Dawn on Saturday that Commerce Minister, Humayun Akhtar Khan would represent Pakistan in the meeting. The other trade ministers besides G-90, who were also invited to attend the meeting were India, China, the United States and the European Union.
The meeting would evaluate the position of the bloc in the context of negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) most particularly according to the protectionism of certain western countries.
Following the mini ministerial meeting at Mombasa, Kenya, it was agreed that there was a need to work out a framework of modalities to facilitate the resumption of negotiations. In this context, most African ministers were of the view that there was an urgent need for the G-90 to review its position and show some flexibility to put the negotiations on the track. In the post-Cancun phase, the two leading blocs, the US and the EU, have already changed their stand on export subsidies, market access and unbundling of Singapore issues.
Elaborating Pakistan's position for resumption of dialogue, the officials said that Islamabad has already asked for early scaling down of tariffs, trade distorting subsidies and domestic support on agriculture produce. Pakistan's position was clear that without clear progress on the three pillars-market access, domestic support and export support-it might not be possible to get back the negotiations on the track.
"We want the developed countries to provide market access to the products of developing countries and do away with all kinds of domestic support," they said.
The officials expressed the hope that the G-90 ministerial meeting might develop some consensus on various issues mostly included agriculture, non-market access (NAMA), services, the Singapore issues and development for making progress in DDA.
|
