BRUSSELS, June 5 (Xinhua) -- European Union (EU) Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson on Tuesday called on the leaders at the G8 summit to use their authority to help complete the Doha Round of World Trade Organization (WTO).

    Addressing the European Parliament's International Trade Committee, Mandelson said the meeting of G8 leaders and their major emerging economy partners at the end of this week is critical for the Doha Round.

    "If we cannot reach a deal on trade today, what chance will we have of reaching collective agreement on the even more difficult issue of climate change in the future?" he said.

    Mandelson feared that the high political stakes were leading some negotiators "to harden their positions rather than offering compromise and flexibility."

    He said that political leaders must now signal "their clear and unambiguous commitment to reaching a multilateral deal in the WTO - and making the tough compromises needed."

    "I believe we need the personal and active engagement of the leaders of the major economies to authorize the compromises to be made on all sides that will deliver a deal that is ambitious, balanced and fair," he said.