Trade Talk Prelims
Snag On Agriculture

GENEVA —(AP)— Disagreements over how to handle agriculture in the next global round of negotiations for freer trade are proving to be the big stumbling block for countries preparing for a kickoff meeting later this month in Seattle, officials said.

Informal discussions between delegations at the World Trade Organization's Geneva headquarters have made progress on other areas of the agenda, but differences remain on agriculture, the officials said.

``It is viewed by many countries that if you can get the agricultural thing somehow squared away then you can begin to move on everything else,'' said one official Thursday.

The issue principally pits the European Union, Japan, South Korea and other supporters against the 16-nation Cairns Group, which includes Australia, Canada and Brazil.

The Cairns Group countries are furious about heavy subsidies given to farmers, especially by the EU. They claim the subsidies create artificially low prices and prevent other nations' producers from competing on an equal footing in the world market.

The Cairns Group members want the subsidies scrapped and say the issue should be settled in the new round, due to be launched at the meeting of ministers in Seattle at the end of November.

The EU and its supporters say they are prepared to talk about subsidies, but claim that agriculture is different from other goods.

They say talks in the area of agriculture should also take into account non-trade issues such as protection of the environment, food safety, animal welfare and protecting rural communities.

The United States, while opposing EU farm subsidies, has taken a sideline position in the WTO wrangling.

``I have not heard of a strategy that has emerged'' that will reconcile the differences over agriculture, the official said.

The 135 members of the WTO have just over three weeks to come up with a draft statement which all ministers can agree to in Seattle.

The document can only be a few pages long. The latest draft has 33 pages.

``They keep coming back to agriculture. It isn't immediately obvious how you can reconcile those discussions,'' the official said.