BERLIN, July 1 (Xinhua) -- Germany will not sacrifice agriculture for an agreement in the Doha Round of World Trade Organization (WTO) talks, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday.

    Ministers from the 30 main trading nations will attend a WTO Doha Round meeting on July 21 in Geneva.

    Merkel said an agreement would not be reached on the back of German agriculture, adding that her government will accept the agreement only if it provides a fair and balanced offer.

    She praised the contributions of European agriculture to the liberalization of world trade and criticized other countries, including developing countries, for trying to secure unjustified economic advantages through the Doha Round.

    Earlier in the day, German Economy Minister Michael Glos and visiting U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson expressed hope in Berlin for a breakthrough in the upcoming talks.

    The WTO's Doha Round of talks started in 2001 and has become bogged down primarily over the agricultural subsidies provided by the United States and the European Union to farmers.