WTO Negotiations
The rich should show leadership: UK
Afp, London
British finance minister Gordon Brown on Friday called on the world's richest countries to 'show leadership' by reinvigorating the moribund so-called Doha round of trade talks. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said the annual International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings next week provided a key chance for progress towards a global trade deal. The Doha round of talks on further freeing up global trade collapsed in July after five years of attempts to remove agricultural and industrial trade barriers. "Singapore is a critical opportunity for the developed world to show leadership and regain momentum to unblock the stalled trade talks, and reach out for the trade deal that offers the world its best hope for long-term prosperity and the only path out of poverty for the developing world," Brown said. "In addition to providing countries with the access to trade we must demonstrate our commitment to provide the practical support to reduce their transport and other costs - which are in some countries a greater barrier than tariffs." At meetings of the Group of Seven industrialised countries on Saturday, Brown will urge all countries to specify "concrete" financing arrangements to back their pledges for aid. Brown and International Development Secretary Hilary Benn also announced additional funding for a government initiative which aims to boost poor countries' trading capacity by improving infrastructure in a variety of areas such as transport, power and communications.
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