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WTO dialogue should address poverty alleviaton: PM

Stating that developing countries are faced with some ''hard realities'' due to adverse impact of globalisation, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Tuesday said Doha declaration of the World Trade Organisation has stressed the need for a global dialogue on development.

''Resource generation for poverty alleviation has to occupy pride of place in this dialogue,'' Vajpayee said in a suo motu statement in both Houses of Parliament on his visit to United Nations, Russia, United States and Britain.

Poverty alleviation should dominate the economic agenda of not only of NAM and G-77, but also of North-South Interaction, he said pointing out at the impact of globalisation on domestic poverty levels and income gaps.

Touching upon his bilateral dialogue with world leaders, the prime minister said India and US have agreed to resume and broaden economic co-operation.

The co-operation would comprise energy, environment, health, biotechnology and information technology, he said adding, ''we will soon initiate discussions on co-operation in space programme and civilian nuclear safety projects''.

With Russia, he said, new areas of bilateral economic co-operation including diversification of trade basket were discussed.

To compensate for the anticipated reduction of Indian exports financed by rupee debt repayment, Vajpayee said, promising new areas in IT, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and diamonds needed to be energetically explored.

While Russian imports of traditional commodities like tea and tobacco should be sustained, ''we also discussed release of rupee payment funds for Russian investment in Indian enterprises,'' he said.

Vajpayee said the two countries hoped to commence soon an institutionalised bilateral dialogue on energy security. India's investment in the Sakhalin oil and gas project already represented a beginning of bilateral co-operation in this field.

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