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WTO states call for deal on green goods

AFP, Geneva
World Trade Organization member states called yesterday for an early deal on freeing up trade on environmental goods and services, ahead of a major climate change summit in Copenhagen.
An early accord could also act as a much-needed stimulus for negotiations for a broader global trade pact, which are locked in an impasse, trade ministers gathered at a meeting of 153 WTO member states said.
"Some like-minded nations, including Japan, are considering conducting discussions with a view to achieving an early agreement to liberalise trade in environmental goods,"
Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Masayuki Naoshima told the meeting in Geneva.
"1 hope that other interested members will join these discussions, and provide fresh impetus to the Round as a whole," he added.
Launched in 2001, the Doha Round of trade liberalisation negotiations have been in a deadlock amid disagreements between developed and developing nations over the level of cuts on farm subsidies and industrial product tariffs. Liberalisation of environmental goods and services is part of Doha talks, and ministers pointed out that since climate change was high on the political agenda, it was an opportune moment to intensify negotiations on lowering tariffs on technologies that help in mitigating the effects of global warming.
"It's riding with the political wave... This is just elementary common sense," Tun Groser, New Zealand trade minister said during a forum on the sidelines of the WTO meeting.
World leaders are set to gather over December 7-18 in Copenhagen to draft a successor treaty to the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012.
"With momentum building to advance climate change policies, we must show, through concrete actions, that trade is an important part of policies to combat climate change," Naoshima said.
Two major players, the United States and the European Union, also pledged support on environmental goods and services.
"We fully support fast-tracking action in the. WTOs work on liberalizing trade in climate-friendly technologies," US Trade Representative Ron Kirk told a working session of the ministerial conference.
Meanwhile, outgoing European Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton also pledged the EU’s engagement on the issue.
"Trade policy can make a significant contribution, through the liberalisation of trade in relevant environmental goods and services," she said on Monday.
"We in Europe invite all Members of the WTO to intensify work in this area," added Ashton, who took up her new post as EU Foreign Policy chief on Tuesday.
However, Indonesian trade minister Mari Pangestu stressed the importance of financing to developing countries preparing to deal with the effects of climatechange.
"Lowering tariffs on clean technology is not going to be enough... to address the climate change objective," she said.
"From a developing country perspective, we also need to have financing and capacity building," sheadded.
India, China and other growing developing nations have been pressing for Western nations to offer technology and other support to help them reduce the intensity of emissions blamed for global warming.