Lamy's prognosis on food crisis finds support in India

Indian trade experts on Tuesday said they agree with WTO Chief Pascal Lamy's prognosis that the world food crisis can be resolved through a global trade agreement that centers around correcting free market distortions.

Director General of the World Trade Organisation had stated early this month that the current food crisis can be solved through a successful outcome of the Doha Round of negotiations for a multi-lateral trade deal among 151 countries.

"Although the WTO cannot provide anything immediate to help solve the current crisis, it can, through the Doha Round negotiations, provide medium to long-term solutions. A WTO deal could help soften the impact of high prices by tackling the systemic distortions in the international market for food," Lamy had said.