European Union trade chief Peter Mandelson urged EU states today to unite behind his push for a world trade deal, brushing aside a new attack by French President Nicolas Sarkozy over his handling of the talks.
"It is clear Mr Mandelson negotiates on behalf of 27 member states," Mr Mandelson's spokesman Peter Power said, referring to a key meeting of World Trade Organisation ministers this month. "His plea to member states is to remain united in order for Europe to have a strong position going into these talks."
Mr Sarkozy told French television last night that he would not accept an agreement under the WTO's long-delayed Doha round of negotiations if it meant European agriculture would be sacrificed in the name of freer trade.
The French president, who took on the EU's rotating presidency today, accused Mr Mandelson and WTO chief Pascal Lamy of trying to force a deal on the EU that would be bad for its farming sector.
France has long opposed the kind of farm import tariff cuts that Mr Mandelson is offering in return for better access for European exporters of cars, chemicals and other manufactured goods in developing countries such as Brazil and India.
Mr Power said the criticism was disappointing coming just as ministers from leading WTO countries prepared to meet from July 21st. They face what could be a last chance for a breakthrough in the round before November's US presidential election delays it further, possibly by several more years.
"It is not about individuals ... it is about giving the global economy a shot in the arm in order to better face global difficulties," he said.
The Doha round was launched in 2001 to help poor countries fight poverty by exporting more and to give the global economy a boost by lowering barriers to trade. But it has missed several deadlines as countries wrangled over how to open each other's markets.