India has said that further progress on multilateral trade negotiations would hinge on resolution of development issues like operationalisation of special and differential provisions, and developed countries addressing the implementation matters and issues related to TRIPs (Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights) and public health.
"It must be recognised there are political pressures within developing countries arising out of failure to meet deadlines. We can recover lost ground to some extent if these issues are addressed and resolved before Cancun (ministerial meeting of WTO trade ministers).
"The need of the hour is a strong message from the developed world represented by the OECD that the development focus of the Doha Agenda is very much intact," Union Commerce and Industry Minister Arun Jaitley said at the ministerial council meeting of Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris on Wednesday, where India was a special invitee.
He said that the concerns of the developing countries need to be addressed to prevent overloading of the agenda for the Cancun ministerial meeting in September.
Addressing the OECD session on trade issues, Jaitley said that the Doha work programme was proceeding at two speeds with the developed countries giving priority to issues of their concern like industrial tariffs and in some services sectors.
"In the Doha Declaration, which has been projected as the Doha Development Agenda, it has been clearly noted that the ministers place the needs and interests of developing countries at the heart of the Doha Work Programme.
"But when the issues go to the level of committees or negotiating groups where the actual negotiations take place the scene is different," the minister said, adding, attempts were also made to divert the discussions by also calling for upfront differentiation and graduation among developing countries.
He said that India was concerned by attempts to set aside the special consideration necessary for developing countries to deal with their large and poor rural communities despite an explicit negotiating mandate and an extensively documented need to urgently improve the living conditions of the poor people in the world.
"Therefore, any further market access commitments by developing countries like India must be tempered in order to enable them to safeguard food and livelihood security of their rural poor and promote Rural Development through adequate protection at the border. In addition, developing countries must be provided sufficient flexibility in applying safeguards to address different situations," he said.
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