Lamy urges G20 follow Doha statement with action

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - World leaders gave the Doha round of global trade talks a much-needed boost on Saturday by promising to strive for a breakthrough this year, but that needs to be followed by action at the negotiating table, the head of the World Trade Organization said.

"The G20 have provided much-needed political impetus to the Doha round," WTO Director General Pascal Lamy said in a statement read by his spokesman in a phone call from Geneva.

"This high-level commitment to enhance the global trading system is vital to the success of our negotiations. What we need now is for this strong show of support to be translated into action at the negotiating table in Geneva," Lamy said.

(Reporting by Doug Palmer; Editing by Eric Walsh)