India urges rich nations to give ground as G33 meets

[OhioChick]

Source: Reuters India

Wed Mar 21, 2007 9:32 AM IST

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Rich nations must give ground to help global free trade talks make progress, India's trade minister said on Wednesday, as a meeting of developing nations sought to send a united message on cutting farm subsidies.

Indonesia is hosting a meeting of developing nations in the G33 group aimed at discussing positions for the World Trade Organisation's long-troubled Doha round of negotiations.

The five-year-old Doha round was relaunched in January after a six-month suspension triggered by differences among major trading partners, especially the United States and the European Union, over agricultural subsidies.

Asked about his confidence in the Doha round making progress, Trade Minister Kamal Nath said: "It's not my confidence. The question is whether the developed countries are willing to make things move forward to move towards an artificial deadline which arises out of their own political, their own domestic situation."



Read more: http://in.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2007-03-21T092528Z_01_NOOTR_RTRJONC_0_India-291737-1.xml&archived=False

---

Sounds worried, since the decider's "fast-track" authority expires in June.

[katsy]

1. Maybe we can speed up outsourcing jobs?

Would that help? :sarcasm:

[pampango]

2. I believe that the Third World's main concern is with the subsidies

given to corporate farmers in the EU, US and Canada which makes it difficult for peasant farmers in their countries to compete and make a living. Negotiating some changes in the rules governing outsourcing, cheap exports and currency controls in exchange for modifying agricultural subsidies would seem to be useful for all concerned.

""Speaking now for developing countries, we are prepared to do our part, but of course the big countries, the majors, they have to have the main responsibility, especially them eliminating or diminishing the subsidies," Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said after meeting Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono."

"The so-called G4 - the EU, the United States, Brazil and India -- have intensified their efforts in recent weeks to strike a deal on agriculture, the main sticking point so far in the negotiations, as well as on industrial goods and services."

[katsy]

3. My apologies...

Thanks for the explanation.

[Xithras]

4. Translation: "India wants rich nations food prices to increase, to improve their economy"

Here's a simple question: Why don't India and other third world nations sell their food here now? Answer: Because American food sells too cheaply for Indian companies to make a profit by exporting to the US and EU.

Whether or not you like subsidies for US corporations, this is indisputable. The subsidies currently in place lower the operating costs of US agricultural industries, permitting food to be sold at a lower price. Eliminating those subsidies will cause food prices to increase sharply. This is a good thing for India and other third world nations because it will "level the playing field" and allow them to compete squarely with US ag, but it is a BAD THING for consumers, especially the poorest among us. So the question really should be: Are we willing to hurt our own poor, to help out India's poor and the poor of the third world? I hope to god the answer is NO.

If this does go through, I hope that the US also equalizes the field in other areas. Property taxes should be waived, environmental laws should be waived, consumer protection laws should be waived. Basically, if we're going to compete "fairly" and without subsidies, we should ensure that our farmers and theirs are actually EQUAL in all respects.

I'm not actually advocating this, of course. Food should not be subject to foreign competition, and subsidies which lower the cost of food are OK by me. I really hope our negotiators don't cave on this. While I'm all for helping the third world, I am NOT willing to do so at the expense of our own poor.