The Hindu : Opinion / Interviews : `G-8 should continue to engage with India'

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Friday, Jul 08, 2005

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Opinion - Interviews

`G-8 should continue to engage with India'

The British High Commissioner in India,Michael Arthur, says the G-8 summit will enlarge the focus of talks on the global economy. He talks toSushma Ramchandranabout the prospects of forward movement on climate change, debt-relief and agricultural subsidies.

Michael Arthur: "Climate-related changes should not slow down economic development in developing countries." — Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

The African Union has called for complete debt relief by the G-8 countries. Is such a wide-ranging step possible right now?

Michael Arthur: Probably it is a step too far at this stage, not least because the whole process has to go with some sharing of responsibility by the participating African nations. So questions of governance come into it. That's why the G-8 Finance Ministers' deal [for $40 billion of debt relief for Africa] is carefully targeted on those who are good performing in terms of governance. There will be quite a lot of development assistance but 100 per cent debt relief is not on the cards as yet.

What are the prospects for forward movement on climate change issues given the fact that U.S. President George W. Bush has rejected a revisiting of the Kyoto protocol?

This is the challenge for the U.K. Presidency [of the G-8] because the American position has been quite clear on not wanting to constrain public demand at a time when much of the world is prepared to do that under the Kyoto framework. We need to find ways to tackle these challenges. It has to be more on the supply side. The Americans and others have done work on new technologies. In the U.K. we have done a lot of work in renewable forms of energy like methane gas. In India, you have methane gas, wind and solar energy too. We have to try to get the big players in this area including India to work together to tackle carbon emissions and [find] new ways of having economic development.

The U.K. has always recognised that economic development for countries like India is first priority and do not want climate related changes to slow that down. The issue is how we can together do that in a cleaner way. If the U.S. says no [to the Kyoto protocol] we have got to find a way that even President Bush can accept.

Is it possible to address developing countries' concerns on the need for a special intellectual property regime on clean technologies as well as the need to avoid non-tariff barriers based on environmental factors?

You in India have legislated on patents to WTO standards, which is why your biotech industry is doing so well. If there were to be a constraint on India developing new type of clean energy because of IPR, we in the U.K. would like to find a way around it. This week we want to create a framework so that just such a question can be addressed.

As for non-tariff barriers, we in the U.K. want to avoid misuse but this is less a problem in energy than in the agriculture and health sectors.

U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair has invited India and four other developing countries to the G-8. How far are the concerns of these countries on integrating the global economy going to be discussed at this summit?

The U.K. Prime Minister has made this invitation [to China and India especially] because if the G-8 talk about a wider economic framework, it does not make sense unless Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is at the table.

The more specific issues are about environmental implications and issues of IPR and financing. Our ambition is to set in motion the parameters that will lead to solutions in these specific areas. It is the beginning of a long process.

Is the G-8 dialogue with Development 5 going to extend to the contentious area of agricultural subsidies?

The G-8 summit would take the dialogue a step further. Subsidies is going to come up in general but not specific terms. One of the issues to be discussed is where the global economy is going and the WTO ministerial is crucial to that.

The Doha development round will help freer South-South trade and help Africa. On agriculture, we in the EU have moved forward by breaking the link between production and subsidy to farmers. We removed the incentive to farmers to plant more and have given a commitment to reduce export subsidies to zero over time. Change in agriculture in Europe is on the anvil.

Some would like to have it faster including the U.K. There are two huge agenda items for the U.K.'s EU presidency. One is agriculture and its link to the budget. The wider issue is the nature and structure of European economy as it integrates into the global economy. The second is the constitution. These are two big issues on which Tony Blair wants us to reflect on and move forward in the next six months. The first one may be more tangible and more easy to resolve than the other wider constitutional issue which may take more time.

What are the prospects for talks to begin for Turkey's membership of the EU, especially since this seems to have been a factor in the referendums in France and the Netherlands?

Negotiations can start in October for Turkey's membership of the EU. You do not need a new constitution in place to have these negotiations. The fact of Turkey's membership is debated even within Europe. We have a commitment to Turkey from European Governments and we as the Presidency intend to honour that commitment.

How would you describe the new "strategic partnership" between India and the EU?

It means the relationship is sufficiently important that we dedicate a certain amount of energy and if there are problems must find sufficient way around it. We are going to publish an action plan during the EU-India summit in September. It will cover a big range of issues where Europe and India will sit down together and have a structured dialogue.

Many of the areas of cooperation mirror what is being done with individual countries like the U.K. Mr. Blair will also have a bilateral summit with the Indian Prime Minister.

What is the future of the G-8's engagement with the developing world?

We in the G-8 believe outreach is important. The engagement with Africa is different from that with China and India. Where it goes after Gleneagles, depends on what is decided at Gleneagles. The U.K. would like the continuing engagement with key countries like India. But it depends on the G-8 presidency, and Russia takes it on next year.

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`G-8 should continue to engage with India'