JULY SESSION ON CROATIA'S ADMISSION TO WTO RESCHEDULED FOR SEPT - PORGES

ZAGREB, July 1 (Hina) - Croatian Economy Minister Nenad Porges on Thursday said the closing formal session of a working group for Croatia's admission to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), scheduled for late July, would have to be rescheduled for September. Speaking at today's Government session about this week's fifth round of talks with the United States on Croatia's admission to the WTO, Porges said that the United States was not ready to finish the fifth round of talks and that it had suggested that the talks resume in mid-July. Even if the talks are finished in mid-July, the WTO secretariat will not be able to prepare a closing report by the end of July, so that the closing session of the working group will be postponed for September, he added. "We hope that those engaged in negotiations on technical details would be told at some point that we should draw the line somewhere and complete the talks", Porges said. According to Agriculture Minister Ivan Djurkic, the basic problem in talks with the United States on agricultural and food products was America's insistence on a lower customs protection rate than had been approved for other countries. Djurkic said he hoped Croatia would manage to obtain the same customs protection as other countries. (hina) rml