Brazil Sees India Coming Back Soon to WTO’s Negotiations Table

The governments of Brazil and India are hopeful to reach, in up to three weeks, a common position with regard to the most important themes covered in the Doha Rounds, for liberalization of world trade. The talks have been stalled due to conflicting positions between the US and India.

According to the Brazilian minister of Foreign Relations, Celso Amorim, Brazil's president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh created, in New Delhi, a work program to discuss the common points between both countries, which may lead to the conclusion to the Rounds.

"There is political desire of both sides to conclude the Rounds and we are going to discuss these themes," stated Amorim, adding that Brazil and India also created a commission to monitor trade relations among the countries, which should allow for evaluation of specific problems that may arise.

In the last meeting regarding the Doha Rounds of the World Trade Organization (WTO), in July, Brazil and India disagreed in some points. Brazil accepted the terms negotiated in the agreement, but India blocked negotiations on demanding the expansion of the use of safeguards, to defend itself against a surge in imports.

Last month, India filed a complaint at the WTO, suggesting that Brazil had made an agreement for the opening of the Brazilian ethanol market, in exchange for approval of the rounds in those terms. After the misunderstanding, both countries returned to talks and reached an understanding.

ABr