By IANS,
Brussels : Just a day before the start of the WTO ministerial meeting in Geneva, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso Sunday warned it could be the last chance for a global trade deal, EuAsiaNews reported.
“This is a great opportunity, and perhaps the last great opportunity, to take the decisive step towards conclusion of the Doha Round. The European Union will continue to push for a successful result – a result that would be good for Europe, good for developing countries, and good for the world economy,” he said in a statement released here.
“For these negotiations to succeed, the other developed countries and the emerging economies in the WTO also have to make a major contribution. The overall result has to be balanced and ambitious,” he said.
“Europe cannot be the sole banker of this deal. Moreover, Doha is not just about agriculture – we also need to make progress on industrial tariffs, and in other areas of the negotiations such as services and geographical indications. The Round can and must succeed, but there is a lot of work to do – on all sides,” added the statement.
EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson will represent the European Union at the five-day talks which begin in Geneva Monday to seek a breakthrough in the WTO’s seven-year-old Doha round to free up world trade.