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Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (May25/13) Yerevan, 8 May (D. Ravi Kanth) — The United States on 7 May appears to have severely questioned the World Trade Organization’s Director-General, Ms Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, over several initiatives launched by the WTO Secretariat, with the DG responding that it may not be good to “micro-manage” what the Secretariat does, said people familiar with the discussions. At an informal Heads of Delegation (HoD) meeting, which later turned into a formal Doha Trade Negotiations Committee (TNC) meeting on 7 May, several developing countries emphasized that the mandated issues must take precedence over attempts to turn the WTO’s upcoming 14th ministerial conference (MC14), to be held in Yaounde, Cameroon in the last week of March next year, into a reform-oriented meeting, said people familiar with the development. The meeting witnessed differences on several issues, including on the DG’s alleged attempt to turn MC14 into a reform-oriented meeting, said people familiar with the development. Many developing countries, including India, Indonesia, and several African nations, underscored that the unresolved mandated issues should be the focus of MC14. Significantly, several industrialized countries along with the so-called “Friends of the System” Group led by Singapore seemed to have aligned with the DG in driving home the message that WTO reforms must be at the centre of MC14, said people who asked not to be quoted. The US also emphasized the importance of WTO reforms, as well as the need to study the use of the non- discrimination provisions in several free trade agreements that were not closely scrutinized by the WTO under Article XXIV of the GATT, said people familiar with the discussions. During the afternoon session of the HoD/TNC meeting, sharp exchanges took place between the US and the DG on several issues, including budgetary issues concerning private funds, as well as on the activities of the WTO’s Economic Research and Statistics Division, said people familiar with the discussions. DG’S REMARKS The DG’s remarks, which largely dealt with her recent meetings in Washington DC, suggested that members emphasised the importance of MC14 sending a clear political message reaffirming the WTO’s relevance and resilience amidst ongoing global uncertainty. Incidentally, MC14, which has been scheduled to take place from 26 to 29 March 2026 in Yaounde, Cameroon, could be shortened to just two days, though several members said that there should be a clear communication regarding not extending the ministerial beyond two days. There was also strong support for prioritizing WTO repositioning and reform at MC14, the DG said. However, several members disagreed with the alleged attempt to bypass the mandated issues, with India and Indonesia highlighting the importance of the permanent solution for public stockholding (PSH) programs for food security, while Turkiye emphasized the special safeguard mechanism (SSM), said people familiar with the discussions. There appears to be a clear division among members on what issues need to be prioritized at MC14, said a trade envoy who asked not to be quoted. Attempts are also underway to suit the reform agenda as per the demands of the US, the European Union, and several other industrialized countries, the trade envoy said. The DG, however, appears to be focussing on WTO reforms while paying little or no attention to the mandated issues, the envoy added. “The present disruption is seen as a vital opportunity to address the system’s weaknesses and reposition the WTO for the future,” the DG said at the meeting. “We must not waste a crisis.” At the meeting, the DG issued a matrix paper on what priorities should be considered in the run-up to MC14, said another participant, who asked not to be quoted. According to a press release posted on the WTO’s website, the DG said that workstreams could be established on issues such as dispute settlement reform, how to ensure the current WTO agreements remain dynamic and relevant, and looking at future trade rules so that the WTO remains responsive to evolving needs. Even though the facilitator-led approach was rejected in agriculture and other areas, the DG proposed a phased approach, consisting of a facilitator-led scoping exercise prior to MC14, ministerial guidance at MC14 on actionable steps for moving forward, and post-MC14 implementation within the workstreams, with the view to presenting concrete outcomes for endorsement at the 15th Ministerial Conference or earlier. “We must seize this reform opportunity with seriousness and urgency,” Ms Okonjo-Iweala declared. She said members “need to consider not what the organization can do for us, but what we are willing to give up to reform the organization so it can survive and thrive.” The DG also outlined other priority areas identified for MC14, including agriculture, the “second wave” of the fisheries subsidies negotiations, the e-commerce work programme and moratorium, the incorporation of the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement and the joint initiative e-commerce agreement into the WTO framework, and development issues. On all these issues, a stocktaking of the progress made will take place in July, and by December members “will need to make a clear decision on which negotiating issues are mature enough to be carried forward to MC14, and which are not,” the DG said. “The overarching goal in all this is to enable productive and meaningful ministerial engagement in Yaounde,” she added. RESPONSES The afternoon session of the HoD/TNC meeting on 7 May appears to have witnessed sharp to-and-fro exchanges between the US and the DG, said people who attended the meeting. The US apparently took issue with a statement made by the DG on the impact of tariffs on vulnerable countries. The US said that some members seem to be very attached to some legal provisions and their compliance, for example, Article I of the GATT on non-discrimination, adding that they should also be equally keen to look at some other legal provisions, especially Article XXIV of the GATT, as to what is going on under free trade agreements and whether the non-discrimination provisions are properly taken care of. The US said the WTO’s Committee on Regional Trade Agreements was supposed to do some important work but now members don’t want to let that committee do anything, because they want to do whatever they want under those agreements. It further said that there has not been any discussion on tariff reforms in the WTO, said people who attended the meeting. The US also demanded a thorough examination of industrial subsidies, in what appears to be a reference to the alleged subsidies provided by China, said people who asked not to be quoted. Furthermore, the US raised several concerns over the WTO’s budgetary situation as well as the Secretariat’s activities, saying that the Secretariat is going in all directions, being overly active in so many areas, and that members need more information on its activities, said people familiar with the discussions. The US also raised concerns about the use of private funds, particularly from FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association), but the DG clarified that it is meant for the International Trade Centre (ITC), said people familiar with the development. The US further expressed concern over the WTO’s Public Forum and its expanded agenda. However, due to budgetary constraints, the DG said this year’s Public Forum is being reduced to only two days (as opposed to the usual four days), said people familiar with the discussions. The US said it welcomes the decision to reduce the activities of the Public Forum to two days, as the forum has been going in all directions, said people who asked not to be quoted. At one point, the seemingly agitated DG is understood to have said that it may not be useful for members to “micro-manage” what the Secretariat does, said people familiar with the discussions. In a sharp response, the US official said it is not micro-managing, rather it is to ensure that the Secretariat does what is expected of it as per the rules, said people familiar with the discussions. +
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