The Hindu Business Line : India okay with WTO draft texts circulating in Geneva: PM

New Delhi, Oct. 16 India has conveyed to the US that the draft texts currently in circulation in Geneva could be the basis for discussions towards an agreed outcome in further liberalisation on agriculture and industrial tariffs (NAMA) under the Doha Development Round that remains in limbo.

In a tele conversation with the US President, Mr George Bush, when he called on the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, currently in Nigeria, the latter said reassuringly that the text gives broad indications of the range of possibilities on most issue, though there were grey areas in the text and specific numbers remained to be agreed upon.

Dr Singh emphasised that India was comfortable with most of the elements of these texts which he described as “a reasonable compromise between differing positions of various countries”. Since it is true of any trade deal that involves give and take by all, “India is ready to do its share of giving in this regard”, Mr. Singh told Mr Bush.

While maintaining that India could by and large live with what is on the table, the Prime Minister has said that the country has concerns only on agriculture and would try to help in reaching a compromise. The Prime Minister also told the US President that he would instruct the Commerce Minister to work on these lines.

Dr Singh said the key to the success of the round remains agriculture and emphasised the importancea of taking care of the vulnerability of two-third of the population — 650 million people.

As such, Dr Singh said, India needed some degree of protection through special products and safeguards on which greater clarity was needed. He said this is not yet there and this issue is critical for India.