WTO talks on agenda as Martin meets French minister

World Trade Organisation talks are expected to be on the agenda when Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin meets his French counterpart Bernard Kouchner in Paris tomorrow.

Mr Kouchner is also due to discuss priorities for France’s six-month EU presidency which begins on July 1.

France and Ireland are among the strongest critics of the WTO negotiations among the 27 EU member states.

Last month the WTO send new draft proposals on agriculture and industry to its 152 members in an effort to revive the stalled Doha round of trade liberalisation talks, which first began in 2001.

Mr Martin has warned against rushing into a deal and wants meaningful negotiations postponed until at least after the US presidential elections.

On the domestic front, the current status of the WTO talks is crucial to the result in Ireland’s referendum on the Lisbon Treaty referendum on June 12.

Mr Martin and Mr Kouchner discussed the issue with other EU foreign ministers in Brussels last week.