By Robin Pomeroy and Laura MacInnis
GENEVA (Reuters) - Talks to rescue a world trade deal wereclose to collapse on Tuesday over measures intended to helppoor countries protect their farmers, trade officials said.
Developing countries like China and India are atloggerheads with food exporters like the United States over theissue of safeguards against food import surges, and differenceson several other fundamental parts of a deal are alsounresolved.
Ministers were mulling a new compromise proposal on thesafeguards as talks entered their ninth day -- the longest WTOministerial-level meeting, trade officials said.
Failure remained a real possibility.
"If people don't want this deal, there's no better dealcoming along and we just have to consider, if this fails, whatthey will lose," European Union Trade Commissioner PeterMandelson told reporters on his way into the negotiations.
The talks aimed at salvaging the seven-year-old Doha traderound had been "a minute away" from being called off in theearly hours of Tuesday over safeguards, one trade officialsaid, but there was no sign of agreement over the newcompromise.
"We cannot go on like this much longer," a diplomat said.
But Indonesian Trade Minister Marie Elka Pangestu said:"Some of us are willing to stay as long as it takes. We willstay a few more days if it is necessary."
The negotiations for a global deal trade began in 2001,shortly after the September 11 attacks on the United States, inthe hope of boosting the world economy and helping poorcountries.
They have lurched from crisis to crisis and risk furtheryears of delay without a breakthrough now because of the U.S.presidential election in November and other factors.
Negotiators from the United States, China and India weredigging in their heels on the details of a "special safeguardmechanism" against import surges in food products such as rice.
The proposal also pits developing farm exporters likeParaguay and Uruguay against other poor nations who are worriedabout their farmers' survival, especially in Asia.
"A PRICE AS HIGH AS HEAVEN"
China, the world's new export powerhouse, participating ina WTO negotiating round for the first time, accused the UnitedStates of making excessive demands on developing countries.
"The crux of the current serious difficulties that havearisen in the Doha round negotiations is that, having protectedits own interests, the United States is asking a price as highas heaven," Xinhua news agency quoted Chinese Commerce MinisterChen Deming as saying late on Monday.
A U.S. official said Washington could not agree to a dealthat would reverse trade openness.
Adding to concerns that compromises last week to rescue thetalks could disintegrate, nine EU states -- a third of thetotal and including EU heavyweight France -- demanded betterterms for the bloc on Monday.
But Germany, the world's biggest exporter, remained infavour of a deal, an EU diplomat said.
France has warned that a final deal based on the currentproposals might be rejected next year by European capitals.
French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said: "And we inFrance and Europe say: 'Stop, we can't just open the floodgatesand leave the next 14 years to the Chinese to preparethemselves as if they were an emerging country'."
(Additional reporting by Doug Palmer, James Mackenzie inParis and Paul Taylor in Brussels; Writing by WilliamSchomberg; Editing by Stephen Weeks)