WTO's Lamy urges flexibility from EU in trade talks

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2008

BRUSSELS (AFP) — WTO chief Pascal Lamy urged the European Union to be more flexible in global free-trade negotiations and not simply focus on what Europe stands to win on agriculture or lose on industrial products.

"It's a question of looking at a balance, but it's not 'black and white,' 'we pay on agriculture and we get nothing on industrial goods'," Lamy told the European Parliament's trade panel. "This presentation is just not right."

In WTO talks, Europe is demanding greater market access on industrial goods from emerging countries and is offering to cut some of its generous support for the European agriculture sector in return.

The long-struggling talks are reaching a crunch period with time running out to agree on the broad lines of a deal so that an...