WASHINGTON, June 10: The United States and the European Union must take steps on two trade issues important to developing countries for an upcoming World Trade Organization meeting to succeed, a top Pakistani official said on Monday.

In an interview with Reuters, Pakistan Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan said it was critical to have progress on European agricultural reforms and US flexibility on generic drugs before the WTO meeting in Cancun, Mexico, in September.

“I think we have to see, with respect to agriculture, what happens in the European Union in June,” Mr Humayun said, echoing the US view that the EU must agree to ambitious reform of its Common Agricultural Policy to keep the WTO talks on track.

The EU and Japan are viewed as the principal obstacles to agricultural trade reform within the WTO.

This week, EU farm ministers will vote on a European Commission proposal aimed at lessening the trade-distorting impact of the EU’s farm programme by “decoupling” farm subsidy payments from planting decisions.

US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick has given strong backing to the plan, saying it would give the EU more flexibility to negotiate on agricultural issues in the WTO talks.

WTO negotiators missed a March 31 deadline to agree on a basic framework for reducing domestic farm payments, export subsidies and agricultural tariffs.

But if they can reach agreement before Cancun, “it would give a lot of confidence to developing countries” about the overall talks, Mr Humayun said after a meeting with Mr Zoellick.

The United States also could help by showing more flexibility in negotiations aimed at ensuring all poor countries have access to cheap life-saving drugs, he said.—Reuters