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Japan says no to freeing up ag trade

Japan yesterday expressed its immediate opposition to a draft declaration on freeing up agricultural and other areas of trade, and called for its revision ahead of WTO talks in Cancun next month.

Tokyo made the remarks a day after the WTO's top official in Geneva circulated the draft of a declaration to be issued at a crucial ministerial trade summit in the Mexican resort city in two weeks.

"Although we can detect a certain flexibility, our stance explained in documents is not reflected" in the draft, Japanese farm minister Yoshiyuki Kamei said.

Kamei claims the draft's call for the introduction of a ceiling for tariff rates on imports would hurt Japan's rice industry which is currently effectively protected by a tariff of 490 percent imposed on imported rice.

"We regard [the draft] as the one that contains considerable problems." Kamei said.

"We are going to continue demanding its revision." he said. "We will do our best to let our voice be reflected."

The highly anticipated, 21-page revised outline text covers key areas in the current Doha round of free trade negotiations, including agricultural subsidies and market access for industrial products.

Although its contents are not yet agreed, it suggests frameworks, mostly without figures, for ministers of the 146-strong WTO to agree on at the meeting in the Mexican resort of Cancun to be held Sept.10 to Sept. 14.

On agriculture, the draft text reflects some elements of a joint EU and US plan, released on Aug. 13, but gives more detail on special provisions for developing countries.

It calls for an elimination of export subsidies for products "of particular interest to developing countries."

For remaining products, it proposes reductions "with a view to phasing out, budgetary and quantity allowances for export subsidies," although it adds that the target phasing-out date is still open for negotiation.

Tariff reductions by developed countries should be managed under a "blended" formula involving gentler average cuts for some products, as well as steeper cuts on higher tariffs for others.

The draft text offers alternative solutions for developing countries, but states that they should benefit from "lower tariff reductions and longer implementation periods."

Concerning state aid for farmers, meanwhile, the text calls for limits on certain types of support.

Brazil, India and China last week led a group of 17 developing countries in calling for a substantial reduction of all subsidies to farmers in what amounted to more far-reaching demands than those contained in the EU-US proposal, and for the elimination of all export subsidies.

The draft text addresses another highly controversial area, rules on investment policy, in an apparently contradictory fashion -- at once proposing that ministers decide to begin negotiations, while also stating that the "situation does not provide a basis for the commencement of negotiations in this area."

The 15-nation EU and Japan are among the leading proponents for the negotiations on investment, among them the four Singapore issues, so called after they were first tackled at the WTO Singapore ministerial meeting in 1996.

Ground rules for competition, ensuring transparency in government bidding processes and facilitating trade make up the other three issues -- which have met with opposition from African countries.

No draft proposals are offered in the outline text on the longstanding and controversial problem of ensuring that patent rules do not bar poor countries without their own pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity from access to cheaper medicines.
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