Brasília - President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva received a telephone call from the president of the United States, George W. Bush, and gave him a hard message: if there is no progress with regard to the barriers Brazilian farm exports face, there will not be any progress in other areas of the negotiations at the V Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization which begins tomorrow in Cancun, Mexico.

Lula said the declaration by the head of the WTO on agriculture was "unsatisfactory." but that the meeting was a valuable opportunity to prepare for the next phase in the Doha Round. However, Lula made it clear that Brazil wants progress at Cancun, before a continuation of Doha: "Together with other developing nations, Brazil has made a proposal that will allow us to advance on this question," said Lula.

Bush told Lula that US Trade Representative, Robert Zoellick, will attempt to work with Brazilian Foreign Minister, Celso Amorim, to reach a consensus at Cancun. Lula said Amorim was willing to work for a consensus. "Brazil wants to preserve and strengthen the WTO and multilateral commerce," declared Lula.

Bush also told Lula that he was satisfied with the understandings reached in Geneva on Trade Related Intellectual Property and Public Health. (AB)