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TWN
Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Apr23/13) Geneva, 20 Apr (D. Ravi Kanth) — Indonesia, the coordinator of the Group of 33 (G-33) developing and least- developed countries, has apparently brought the much-neglected Doha Development Agenda (DDA) work program to the center-stage, suggesting that the deliverables for the World Trade Organization’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13) must address the mandated issues under the DDA, said people familiar with the discussions. At a meeting of the Doha Trade Negotiations Committee (TNC) on 19 April, although the WTO members apparently remained divided on a slew of potential deliverables for MC13, to be held in Abu Dhabi in February next year, the developing countries, especially Indonesia, highlighted a range of unresolved mandated issues. At the TNC meeting, while the United States seemed to be inclined to discuss informally proposals on Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) reform, a large number of members, including China, the European Union, Indonesia, and many other countries pressed for text-based negotiations after July, said people familiar with the discussions. Interestingly, the US apparently sought informal discussions on the most crucial issue of DSB reform instead of text-based negotiations, said people familiar with the discussions. The US proposals on DSB reform, seen by the SUNS, appear to contain some radical ideas that point towards a single-tier DSB without the Appellate Body, which, according to Washington, has deviated from the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU), said people who are involved in the discussions. Members also echoed divergent priorities on agriculture, with many countries, including China, seeking outcomes on the mandated issues, while several other countries such as the US and even the European Union apparently zeroing in on food security/insecurity, said people who attended the meeting. Indonesia, which is the coordinator of the G-33 group, delivered a strong statement on the issues of agriculture and special and differential treatment (S&DT), calling for resolving the mandated issues outlined in the Doha Development Agenda. Several members pressed for resolving the impasse involving the extension of the WTO’s 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) Ministerial Decision on the TRIPS Agreement to COVID-19 diagnostics and therapeutics, said people, after attending the meeting. Some members like South Africa and India apparently suggested the need to terminate the current moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions. The least-developed countries (LDCs) appear to have pressed for a decision on the long-pending issue of extending the specific flexibilities, which are currently given to LDCs, to graduating LDC members under a long transition period. On the fisheries subsidies negotiations, in which the chair, Ambassador Einar Gunnarsson of Iceland, proposed some questions for reflection during the second “fish week” that begins on 25 April, members seemed to adopt different views on how to proceed in the next eight months to MC13. The TNC meeting witnessed repeated calls, especially from the WTO Director-General, Ms Ngozi Okonjo- Iweala, for members to submit their instruments of acceptance of the protocol of the partial Fisheries Subsidies Agreement involving disciplines for IUU (illegal, unreported, and unregulated) fishing and for addressing the global depletion of fish stocks. At the meeting, the DG apparently asked Nigeria why it has not submitted its instrument of acceptance so far and that it must submit it without delay, a call that apparently raised some eyebrows among members, said people, after attending the meeting. The DG apparently said that some members are toying with the idea of not accepting the protocol until a full agreement is concluded. She suggested that such an approach is not conducive to arriving at outcomes for MC13, said people, who asked not to be quoted. More importantly, many developing and least-developed countries seem to have pressed for a solution to the G-90’s ten Agreement-specific proposals on special and differential treatment. This is an area of high resistance from major developed countries, particularly the US, said people familiar with the discussions. DG’S REMARKS – FROM “DE-DRAMATIZE” TO “DRAMATIZE” At the TNC meeting, Ms Okonjo-Iweala drew attention to the deceleration in global trade growth, and suggested that “slower economic growth will, over the long-term, mean lower living standards and opportunities for people around the world.” The DG, who apparently continues to champion globalization regardless of the inequalities it had created as noted recently by the US Trade Representative (USTR) Ambassador Katherine Tai, said: “It is important to internalize digital trade as a new source of growth and ensure we’re providing the enabling environment, the level playing ground and the rules for this to thrive.” In her remarks, posted on the WTO website, the DG said: “We should also ensure we play a role as a multilateral arena for global cooperation that can deliver for people.” “We did this at MC12 and I know we can do it again,” she added. “As the multilateral organization providing the framework for trade relations among 164 members, it is our responsibility to contribute solutions to economic challenges the world is confronting.” The DG’s intervention was preceded by reports from the chairs of the negotiations on agriculture, fisheries subsidies, services, and development delivered by Ambassador Alparslan Acarsoy of Turkiye, Ambassador Einar Gunnarsson of Iceland, Ambassador Zhanar Aitzhanova of Kazakhstan and Ambassador Kadra Hassan of Djibouti, respectively. Concerned by the halting progress in the negotiations in all areas, the DG warned: “While it is good that we have an up-tick of activities in WTO bodies, we should not let ourselves slip into a pattern of simply continuing technical work ad infinitum.” “From today’s reports, frankly speaking, we have to get moving. If we want to succeed at MC13, we have to genuinely start negotiating on substance,” she said. Like the proverbial statement that “Rome was not built in a day”, the DG said: “Consensus cannot be built overnight and if we do not dramatize our work in Geneva, we cannot de-dramatize the work of the ministers.” “I do not want to have to report in July that, despite hard work from all sides, we are still far apart. So, the onus is on you to deliver,” she asserted. The new chair of the WTO’s General Council, Ambassador Athaliah Lesiba Molokomme of Botswana, gave a detailed assessment of her consultations with some 34 countries on a variety of issues including dispute settlement reform, the need to empower and bring reforms in the deliberative function and strengthening of the General Council and Trade Negotiations Committee among other issues, said people who asked not to be quoted. CHINA’S ASSESSMENT China’s trade envoy, Ambassador Li Chenggang, issued a powerful but brief statement at the TNC meeting touching on all the issues. Ambassador Chenggang said: “Among all the issues for MC13, implementing MC12 mandates, responding to the current global challenges, as well as fulfilling the long-standing mandates should be the key parts of MC13 outcome discussion.” On dispute settlement reform, Ambassador Chenggang said that it is a top priority for China, and underscored the need to “focus on core issues in an open and flexible manner while maintaining the core features of the dispute settlement mechanism.” Through collective efforts, he said, “We should be able to narrow down the options for addressing various concerns before the summer break, which could pave the way for the text-based negotiations in a more formal manner afterwards.” On another important issue concerning development, China said that “LDC graduation transition is widely considered a must-have by members.” Ambassador Chenggang said, “it is also high time for us to translate the long overdue SDT mandate as reflected in the G90 proposal into a concrete outcome.” The Chinese trade envoy said, “extension of TRIPS waiver to COVID-19 diagnostics and therapeutics should also be part of the discussion.” Concerning the lack of progress in agriculture, Ambassador Chenggang said, “Based on MC12 Ministerial Decision, tangible results for food security should be reached in MC13”, adding that “China is open to looking at this issue in a broader perspective and sees the importance of taking into consideration pressing challenges, such as climate change.” “However, questions on individual member’s implementation should not be an excuse to challenge or undermine the existing mandate,” the Chinese trade envoy argued. On fisheries subsidies, China said that “it should be our common objective to announce the entry into force of the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement by MC13”, emphasizing that “we are also looking forward to substantial progress on the second wave of negotiations.” On the most difficult areas of WTO reform, China welcomed suggestions by members on the “reform by doing” approach and sees great value in several recent proposals on improving the institutional functioning of the WTO. To oversee the discussions on “many common elements in these proposals”, China suggested that the General Council chair consider nominating a coordinator to make the discussions well-organized and efficient. Finally, on the need to “de-dramatize” MC13, the Chinese envoy said that “it needs effort and hard work of ourselves as Ambassadors and delegates in Geneva.” China also highlighted the importance of “active participation from capital and Ministers, including thematic sessions of Ministers,” adding, “from what we learned from MCl2, to avoid dramatic negotiations by Ministers in the last minutes.” Ambassador Chenggang proposed “a high level or vice Minister level meeting 2 or 3 days right before MC13 in Abu Dhabi, to make the final sprint on those documents to be decided by Ministers.” INDONESIA BRINGS DDA TO CENTER-STAGE At the TNC meeting, Indonesia, which is the coordinator of the G-33 group, said that members must address “ongoing challenges and the mandate on TNC based on the Doha Development Agenda.” Indonesia’s trade envoy, Ambassador Dandy Iswara, highlighted, in agriculture, “the need to deliver the critical mandated issues at the Ministerial Conference.” Ambassador Iswara urged members to work with “an open mind and constructive engagement” so that they can accomplish “meaningful outcomes” at MC13. The Indonesian trade envoy reiterated that S&DT “is an integral part to our negotiation, we need to further ensure that the development needs of developing countries can be met, including food security and rural development.” In this regard, Indonesia emphasized that “resolving our homework on PSH (public stockholding) and SSM (special safeguard mechanism) as well as achieving a balanced and fair outcome in domestic support and cotton, should continue to remain high on our agenda.” As regards the e-commerce work program, Ambassador Iswara said, “the discussion on the important issues will be useful and applicable, not only for developing countries and LDCs, but to all Members.” “Going forward, we can consider identifying important elements emerging from the discussion series that we can report to the Ministers at MC13,” he said. Expressing deep disappointment over not extending the MC12 Ministerial Decision on the TRIPS Agreement to diagnostics and therapeutics, Indonesia said “as part of the co-sponsors of the TRIPS waiver proposal, we are deeply disappointed that no agreements can be reached on the decision to extend the scope to therapeutics and diagnostics, despite the Ministers’ mandate.” Ambassador Iswara said he hopes “to continue receiving updates regarding the US fact-finding investigation,” while underlining the role of WHO, as the leading body, in assisting members. On the issue of dispute settlement reform, Indonesia reiterated “its continued priority to resolve the current impasse of the Appellate Body, which we believe is crucial in our common efforts to maintain the security and predictability of the Multilateral Trading System.” He drew attention to the importance of trade in generating income, alleviating poverty, creating job opportunities, and more importantly for addressing developmental needs. “However, to be able to compete fairly in an open trade, we need to ensure that trade rules under WTO could address the historical imbalances.” It is against this background that Indonesia said that members should “expeditiously work together to advance our homework and complete our unfinished business under the Doha mandate.” “Indeed, we need to remain committed to the elements of SDG 17 in the 2030 Sustainable Development agenda, especially to promote a universal, rules-based, open, non-discriminatory and equitable multilateral trading system under the WTO, including through the conclusion of negotiations under its Doha Development Agenda,” Indonesia emphasized. To achieve these goals, Indonesia said: “We need to operationalize S&DT for developing countries and LDCs so that we can address such imbalances and move toward a more equitable trading system.” “Such principles should also apply to the fisheries subsidies negotiation,” Indonesia said, adding that “by doing so, we can achieve a comprehensive fisheries subsidies agreement that is fair and proportionate, including taking into account the consequences of members’ actions with regard to fish stock depletion.” In conclusion, Indonesia issued a powerful message that “as we have agreed to work under the Doha mandate, we have to strengthen the role of TNC so that we can expedite our journey and achieve our target in line with our Doha Commitment.” “Indonesia will remain committed to working together with other members to deliver remaining mandated issues from Doha and to achieve meaningful outcomes at MC13,” Ambassador Iswara said. EU’S CAUTION The European Union’s trade envoy, Ambassador Joao Aguiar Machado, also issued a strong statement at the TNC meeting that called for realistic and meaningful outcomes at MC13. The EU, which recently circulated a proposal for strengthening the deliberative function within the WTO committees, expressed satisfaction for the support it received on “the importance of enhanced deliberation on key global trade challenges as outlined in the paper by the European Union.” As regards the MC13 deliverables, particularly on the most critical issue of dispute settlement reform, Ambassador Machado said, “Restoring a well and fully functioning dispute settlement system in the WTO remains a top priority for the European Union.” Emphasizing the commitment undertaken at MC12, Ambassador Machado quoted the paragraph in the MC12 outcome document that calls on members “to conduct discussions with the view to having a fully and well- functioning dispute settlement system accessible to all Members by 2024”. He said that it “means we must aim for an agreement on Dispute Settlement reform as a deliverable at MC13”, arguing that members cannot miss this political opportunity. “With this goal in mind, the European Union is keen to see the ongoing discussions continue in a focused and result-oriented manner, and to start text-based discussion after the summer break. We have an ambitious schedule in place and we must deliver,” Ambassador Machado said. On fisheries subsidies, Ambassador Machado said, “the outstanding issues – including special and differential treatment – are challenging.” However, he did not address the issue of the specific carve-outs being given to the big subsidizers, as alleged by many developing countries, said people, who preferred not to be quoted. The EU apparently suggested that “by the beginning of June we will have completed the process” of acceptance of the protocol of the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement. On the e-commerce moratorium, in which the G-7 industrialized countries, including the EU, want a permanent moratorium, the EU trade envoy said, “It is of vital importance for the business community in both developed and developing countries and of systemic overall importance to the WTO.” The EU said that members “must work together to find a more stable solution for the moratorium and the work programme”, but did not suggest what would constitute a stable solution. On the development package for MC13, Ambassador Machado said that it is a priority for MC13, adding that Brussels is “willing to engage constructively on the LDC proposals as well as on the papers from the African Group and the G90 in the CTD-SS and other relevant bodies.” On an agriculture outcome for MC13, the EU said, “The focus could be on a food security package, which, on the one hand, could include at least advancement on the work on export restrictions and transparency, and, on the other, results on the implementation of the MC12 food insecurity declaration.” The EU also highlighted that “the reform of trade-distorting domestic support (including for cotton) and further discussions on public stockholding will need to consider their impact on food security.” While remaining silent on the long-pending mandated issue of the permanent solution for public stockholding programs for food security, the EU said, “the aim should be reform towards less trade-distorting and providing the right incentives in terms of food security and sustainability targets.” Given the criticism that the EU is currently facing on its proposal to tackle deforestation through allegedly punitive measures, the EU underscored the need for discussing a “novel approach to agricultural negotiations” that should integrate “the relevant aspects of food security, environment, climate, poverty reduction and sustainable production.” +
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