India links trade pact to food subsidies deal

Trade Facilitation Agreement should be postponed till progress is made on resolving WTO caps on farm subsidies issue

India on Friday said at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) General Council meeting in Geneva that the failure of the trade body to work in the interests of all its members and to deliver meaningfully on the “development” mandate of the Doha Development Round would pose a far more serious risk to its credibility than any other factor.

India suggested that the adoption of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) be postponed till satisfactory progress is made on the issue of finding permanent protection for India’s minimum support prices to farmers against the WTO subsidy caps that are benchmarked to food prices of the 1980s.

India’s statement came after fellow WTO members accused India of being a spoilsport to have blocked the TFA on Thursday.

India said it was not opposed to the TFA but demanded that other decisions of Bali be taken forward in the same time frame and demanded that the “adoption of the TF Protocol be postponed till a permanent solution on public stockholding for food security is found, the statement said.

India proposed modifications to the Protocol, including setting December 31, 2014 as the deadline for finding a permanent solution on public stockholding for food security.

Other suggestions include the immediate establishment of an institutional mechanism such as a dedicated Special Session of the Committee on Agriculture and the adoption of clear-cut procedures, timelines and outcomes under this institutional mechanism to arrive at the permanent solution by the deadline. India recommended a similar approach also on all other elements of the Bali including those for Least Developed Countries.

In its statement on Friday, India pointed out that the developing countries had accepted the Bali package in good faith reassured by the renewed affirmation of commitment to the Doha Development Agenda and its development dimension.

But these expectations have been completely belied by the developments after the Bali Ministerial, India said, adding that it has consistently pointed out its serious concern about the lack of progress on some of the Bali outcomes and minimal movement on the others.