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Late last month, India torpedoed a deal to
simplify, standardize and streamline the rules for shipping
goods across borders, know as "trade facilitation", after it
demanded concessions on agricultural stockpiling.
"If we don't find a solution for this issue, we could see a
considerable impact on other areas of world negotiation,"
Azevedo said in a speech in Mexico City, referring to WTO
negotiations.
"I think that we have an opportunity in September to restart
talks and see if a bridge is possible," he added.
India insisted that, in exchange for signing the trade
facilitation agreement, it must see more progress on a parallel
pact giving it more freedom to subsidize and stockpile food
grains than is allowed by WTO rules.
India's government said last week it believed it could convince
other members that its need for more freedom on food subsidies
was legitimate, and has said it could sign a deal as early as
September if its concerns are addressed.
(Reporting by Joanna Zuckerman Bernstein and Adriana Barrera;
Writing by Christine Murray; Editing by Simon Gardner and Ken
Wills)
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