Brazil slashes at developed countries' agricultural subsidies

Brazilian Minister of External Relations Celso Amorim criticized developed countries' slowness in cutting agricultural subsidies, which was alleged to have blocked the World Trade Organization's Doha Round talks.

"After so many years -- should I say decades or centuries? -- remnants of feudalism have been lingering on side by side with other forms of unacceptable privileges," he told a plenary session of the ongoing Sixth WTO Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong, blaming the developed countries' agricultural policy.

Subsidies and barriers in developed countries suppress prices, displace production and threaten livelihood in developing nations, he told delegates from the international trade talks mechanism's 149 members.

"This is where reform is most needed and most urgently," he said, adding "Rich countries cannot expect to receive payment for doing what they should have done long ago."

He urged developed countries to eliminate or drastically cut all forms of trade-distorting subsidies, including domestic subsidies and export subsidies.

Brazil is a major exporter of agricultural products and is leading a Group-20 delegation in the WTO talks. The group is composed mainly of developing countries such as India and China, which share common ground on the agricultural issue in the WTO talks.

Source: Xinhua