GENEVA (AP) -- A week of talks to broker a U.N.-sponsored tobacco control treaty ended with good progress, a senior health official said.

The draft of the international anti-tobacco treaty, set to enter into force in 2003, was packed with options for alternative wording setting out differing and often competing policy options on taxation, marketing, labeling and anti-smuggling measures. The talks, which ended Wednesday evening, will continue in March and October. But Derek Yach, head of the World Health Organization' s anti-smoking campaign, said the " general trend is moving toward a public-health oriented treaty." " The language we have creates options for a strong treaty. There' s also language that could make it a weak treaty -- but all the language is clear, " Yach said. Delegates had been bogged down trying to agree on particular sentences or single words in the document, but WHO officials said they were now at a stage were they could focus on the issues in the draft. Delegates remained split, however, over which country should chair the next round of talks, and finished by drawing straws to decide. The vacancy follows the departure of Celso Amorim, the Brazilian diplomat who drew up the draft. Amorim is being moved to another post by his government. Brazil wants to keep the chair, but is opposed by South Africa, which is arguing for a strong treaty. The United States drew the straw to become acting chair, while Iran is now responsible for finding a solution to the deadlock before March. Anti-smoking campaigners said they were cautiously pleased with progress at the Geneva meeting -- despite what they said were industry and pro-tobacco government attempts to produce a weak treaty. The meeting had managed " to streamline an unwieldy draft text that consisted of different and often conflicting approaches to key issues, " said Judith Wilkenfeld of the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. She praised developing countries for not giving in to tobacco industry lobbying. " It is heartening that nations from Africa, Asia, the Middle East ... that are the latest targets of the tobacco industry' s marketing barrage have taken strong positions and have succeeded in keeping them under consideration as the negotiating process moves forward, " she said. Wilkenfeld said also that participants had agreed to discuss in March a total ban on terms like " light" and " low-tar" to describe cigarettes. Campaigners say these mislead people who might otherwise stop smoking. WHO says smoking and tobacco related disease kills 4 million people per year worldwide. Deaths are expected to reach 10 million per year by 2030, with 70 percent of them in developing countries.

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