Ambitious EU-Africa summit ends in trade deadlock

By Axel Bugge and Henrique Almeida

LISBON (Reuters) - Africa and Europe's first summit in seven years ended on Sunday without agreement on the key issue of trade, dealing a blow to efforts to forge a new economic partnership between the two continents.

More than 70 European and African leaders were also at odds on how to deal with Zimbabwe, which was singled out along with Sudan by German Chancellor Angela Merkel for not respecting human rights.

The two-day summit ended with an ambitious action plan and a promise to meet again in 2010. But the world's largest trading bloc and its poorest continent were at loggerheads over trade, which would be the basis for future economies ties.

The EU is Africa's largest commercial partner, with trade totaling more than 215 billion euros ($315.2 billion) in 2006. But EU officials and businessmen fear growing Chinese investment in Africa could displace Europe from the top spot.

Beijing held a summit for African leaders last year, wooing them with multibillion-dollar trade investment contracts.

The EU wants to replace expiring trade accords with so-called Economic Partnership Agreements or temporary deals, which anti-poverty groups have criticized for failing to provide protection for Africa's poor farmers and its fragile industry.

"It's clear that Africa rejects the EPAs," Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade angrily told reporters. "We are not talking any more about EPAs, we've rejected them ... we're going to meet to see what we can put in place of the EPAs."

Brussels insists on new trade deals by December 31, when a waiver by the World Trade Organization on preferential trade arrangements for developing countries expires.