Cancun (Mexico): Battlelines have been drawn on trade issues, with India spearheading the developing countries' fight against pro-developed stance of United States and European Union on contentious issues like agriculture as Trade Ministers from 146 countries gather for the five-day World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial beginning on September 10.

A 60-member Indian delegation led by Commerce Minister Arun Jaitley arrived in Cancun in the early hours of September 9. Jaitley swung into action immediately holding one-to-one talks with United States Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and meeting with like-minded group of developing countries and Brazilian authorities ahead of the Ministerial.

Jaitley, who has come with a clear mandate from Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to safeguard the national interests, is expected to oppose any move to bring in investment and competition rules into the work programme of the WTO besides attempts by US and EU to bulldoze its way into the tough agriculture negotiations.

A large number of anti-globalisation activists have also descended on the Caribbean resort to protest against free trade and growing corporate domination.

About 20,000 Mexican police have taken positions around the conference venue and intensified patrolling to prevent any repeat of Seattle in 1999 when violent protests had stalled the trade talks.

PTI

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