China on Wednesday called on the developed members of the World
Trade Organization (WTO) to make substantial concessions on the
agricultural issues during the new round of multi-lateral trade
talks held in the Mexican resort.
"The current stalemate (on agriculture) can not be broken nor
can the overall negotiations be pushed forward unless developed
members with high subsidy, high support and high tariffs make major
and substantial reduction commitments," said Lu Fuyuan, head of the
Chinese delegation in a speech at the 5th WTO ministerial
conference from Sept. 10 to 14.
Lu, China's trade minister, said tariffs must also be
substantially reduced for non-agricultural market access
(NAMA).
"We hold that NAMA negotiations should aim to substantially
reduce tariff peaks and eliminate tariff escalation and should
observe the principle of 'less than full reciprocity' to genuinely
safeguard the interests of members whose economy are at the level
of developing countries," Lu said.
The Chinese minister also stressed that the specific
circumstances in developing countries should be taken into
consideration in the new round.
The new round of multi-lateral trade talks was launched at the
Doha round in 2001. Trade ministers from the 146 WTO members are
expected to reach agreements on lowering global trade barriers,
including farm subsidies, during the talks.
(Xinhua News Agency September 11, 2003)