Draft agreement on agriculture cuts

THE EU and the US have reached agreement on a framework for handling demands from developing nations for cuts in agricultural subsidies at World Trade Organisation talks.

The common position was hammered out at the request of the WTO to help facilitate the talks on agriculture, which have emerged as the biggest stumbling block towards progress on a deal to open up global trade by 2005.

"This is not a detailed text, this is a framework text with a little detail in it," said EU spokesman Eric Mamer.