Thaindian News

New Delhi, Sep 13 (IANS) Successful conclusion of the Doha round of multilateral trade negotiations would provide a $500 billion “stimulus” to the world economy, helping the developing countries most, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said Monday.
“The developing countries have much to gain and most to lose in the success or failure of this round,” Sharma said in a written statement at a CII event.

He said India had taken initiatives to conclude the ongoing negotiations of the Doha round of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which has seen no substantive progress since December 2008. India took an initiative of convening a ministerial meeting in September last year to take the negotiations forward. However, no substantial progress was made.

“I must admit with a sense of disappointment that the response which we had expected from our interlocutors in the West was not forthcoming,” Sharma said.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of the CII event, D.K. Mittal, additional secretary at the ministry, said India was expecting some “substantive” progress on the Doha round negotiations at the Geneva meeting scheduled to be held in October.

Officials from five major negotiating parties - India, US, Europe, China and Brazil - are scheduled to meet at the WTO headquarters to take the stalled negotiations forward.

Sharma said because of the economic crisis the developed economies were resorting to protectionism, which has negatively affected the progress on the Doha round.

“India remains committed to the successful conclusion of Doha round, but it is not for us alone to embark on a path for concluding the multilateral trade negotiations and we expect US and Europe to show leadership for an early closure,” said Sharma.

Doha round of trade negotiating of the WTO, launched in the Qatari capital in 2001, aims to boost global trade by reducing trade barriers.

– Indo-Asian News Service

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