Sarkozy blames EU trade chief for Irish "no"

By Francois Murphy

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy launched a new attack on Europe's trade chief Peter Mandelson on Friday, linking his stance in world trade talks to Ireland's rejection of a new treaty to reform the EU.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi separately criticized the European Commission's communication methods, accusing it giving the bloc a poor public image.

France is a staunch defender of Europe's huge farm subsidies and often criticizes Mandelson for the agriculture concessions he is offering to close a long-overdue global trade deal.

At a European Union leaders summit dominated by the Irish referendum crisis, the French president fired off a new broadside, saying the British commissioner had upset Irish farmers with his strategy in the World Trade Organization talks.

Asked whether European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso was to blame, Sarkozy told reporters: "Ireland's debate focused on abortion, euthanasia ..., taxation, the WTO, agriculture. You can't blame that on Mr Barroso. Choose someone else. Mandelson, for example."

Around 10,000 Irish farmers marched in Dublin in April against Mandelson's plans to cut import tariffs on beef, dairy and other farm products as part of the EU's offer at the WTO.

The leaders of Irish farming groups dropped their threat to call for a 'no' against the Lisbon Treaty before last week's referendum after the Irish government promised it would not accept a WTO deal that was against Ireland's interests.

Sarkozy reiterated his opposition to the kind of deal shaping up in negotiations at the WTO.

"If we want to deepen the Irish crisis, all we have to do is add to it by continuing on a totally unbalanced agreement at the WTO. That is really counterproductive," he said.

"One child dies every 30 seconds because they are hungry, and we should go and negotiate within the WTO framework a 20 percent cut in European agricultural production? Honestly, there is one person who is of that opinion -- that's Mr Mandelson."

With developing nations demanding that rich countries lower trade barriers protecting their farmers, agriculture is one of the main issues in WTO negotiations aimed at clinching a new global trade pact before November's U.S. presidential election.

But negotiators say there is a real risk that the talks, now in their seventh year, could fail to find a breakthrough.

BARROSO BACKS MANDELSON

Mandelson sought to downplay Sarkozy's criticism.

"We should be clear that President Sarkozy was asked to blame the president of the Commission and tactfully and diplomatically chose to blame me instead. My shoulders are broad enough and my skin thick enough to take this," he told Sky TV.