The Hong Kong session of the Parliamentary Conference on the World Trade Organization (WTO) ended on Thursday with a declaration urging all the WTO members to advance the Doha Round trade talks.

"Open, free, fair and growing trade reduces poverty and brings benefits to developing countries," said the declaration issued after the Dec. 12-15 meeting.

It called on leaders, ministers and negotiators of the WTO members to "show vision and leadership and pledge full support for the multilateral trading system."

The least-developed countries should be granted with the duty-free and quote-free market access and the recently acceded members be given special and differential treatment at the Doha Round talks,said the declaration.

"Agriculture is of concern to developed, developing, least developed, exporting and importing countries alike, and is key to the successful conclusion of trade talks," it added.

Ministers from WTO's 149 members started the Sixth Ministerial Conference here on Tuesday in a new bid to push forward the Doha Round, which has bogged down in a deadlock mainly over agriculture.

The Doha Round, launched in the Qatari capital in 2001, aims to lift barriers to trade and reduce poverty in developing countries.

Source: Xinhua