WTO: India's path diverging from S Africa's, its parting of ways with China

India has often been the fall guy for assiduously safeguarding development issues at the WTO Ministerials, but it has seen a rapid decline in its coalition partners of developing countries

After the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Abu Dhabi failed to deliver a substantial outcome in spite of an extended deadline, European Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis took to microblogging platform X to vent his frustration.

“European Union (EU) engaged intensively on: Fisheries subsidies, agriculture & WTO reform. Agreements were within reach, supported by a big majority, but ultimately blocked by a handful of countries — sometimes just 1,” Dombrovskis posted, adding a picture of India’s trade minister Piyush Goyal, WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and himself engaged in an animated conversation.

Though a picture