EU states concerned about global trade deal

The European Union's top trade negotiators said on Saturday they had support to continue talks on a compromise plan in world trade talks, but some EU states expressed deep concern about the negotiations.

The Doha negotiations for a global trade deal were launched in 2001 to boost the world economy and help fight poverty and chances for a long-elusive breakthrough improved dramatically on Friday as the compromise proposals were hammered out.

"We will return to the 'green room' tomorrow with the backing of EU member states to work on this emerging deal," EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said, referring a closed-door meeting of trade ministers from around 30 key World Trade Organization players scheduled for Sunday.

"There are still potential potholes in the road ... But we are closer to a deal than we have been at any point in the last seven years," Mandelson told reporters on the sixth day of intensive talks, which are aimed at reaching a breakthrough in the long-running Doha world trade round.

After a week of stalemated negotiations aimed at slashing import tariffs and trade distorting subsidies, negotiators from six key countries and the EU accepted compromises floated by World Trade Organization (WTO) chief Pascal Lamy.

Mandelson and European Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel met EU member states to brief them on the proposed compromise, which would require the EU cut its spending ceiling on trade-distorting farm subsidies by 80 percent and open its market to increased agriculture imports.

But Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said he and French President Nicolas Sarkozy had "deep concern" about proposals drawn up to rescue the deal and would remain in touch as the talks continue.

French Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Idrac said several EU countries including France, which has the presidency of the bloc, were concerned the proposals were not balanced and needed to secure more access to markets in developing countries. Ireland also expressed disquiet.

"There is considerable disquiet and discontent (among EU countries) on a number of the specific aspects of it," Mary Coughlan, Ireland's deputy prime minister, told Reuters.

"We have a couple of issues and one, of course, is agriculture. And we don't see the balance in NAMA (trade in industrial goods), and we haven't seen services at all as of yet," she added.