Bush, Singh seek progress in WTO talks: White House

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush and India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday discussed the need for leading trading nations to contribute to a breakthrough in the Doha round of world trade talks, the White House said.

Talks in Geneva to salvage a global trade deal faced a crunch point on Thursday after three days of scant progress, with rich and poor countries remaining at loggerheads over who must make the next move.

"The president and Prime Minister Singh ... discussed the importance of all leading WTO members making contributions to a breakthrough that will put the Doha round negotiations on a path to conclude an ambitious agreement before the end of the year," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said, summarizing a phone call between the two leaders.

India, one of the world's biggest emerging economies, had welcomed an offer by the United States on Wednesday to limit its disputed farm subsidies as part of efforts to ease the deadlock.

The talks, launched in the Qatari capital in 2001, are meant, among other things, to make it easier for developing countries to export farm produce by reducing rich countries' subsidies and import tariffs on agricultural goods.

Thursday's call was Bush's first with Singh since the Indian government survived a parliamentary vote of confidence this week, and the White House said the two leaders agreed to press ahead with efforts to cement a civilian nuclear deal.

"The president said he looks forward to continuing to work with his government to strengthen the United States-India strategic relationship. Both leaders expressed their desire to see the U.S.-India civil nuclear issue move forward as expeditiously as possible," Johndroe said.

The pact, which would make India a de facto nuclear power despite not signing the Non-Proliferation Treaty and conducting nuclear tests in 1974 and 1998, ran into trouble after Singh's government faced a revolt by its former communist allies, culminating in Tuesday's confidence vote.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said earlier on Thursday the Bush administration would push the U.S. Congress hard to agree to the nuclear deal before Bush leaves office.

The agreement, which would give India access to nuclear fuel and technology, has fairly broad bipartisan support in Congress, but its passage could be complicated by the short legislative calendar ahead of the November U.S. election.

(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick; Editing by James Dalgleish)