WTO: What’s behind Thailand-India spat

Unless you are an avid reader of all things concerning world trade, Tuesday’s spat between India and Thailand at the ongoing World Trade Organisation (WTO) conference may have come as a surprise. The Thai ambassador to WTO accused India of exporting rice at unfairly low prices funded by govt subsidies. The subsidies, the allegation goes, that are meant to supply low-price rice to India’s poor, are actually subsidising the country’s rice exports.

Indian delegation protested the claim, lodged a complaint, taking strong exception to the statement.

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The incident is only the latest spark to fly off the contentious issue of agriculture trade that has divided countries for over two decades. India and Indonesia, along with other developing nations, are pushing for reforms in rules governing agriculture trade. The current rules don’t allow them enough freedom to support their farmers and…