EU Outlines Doha Position

04/08/2011    23

Any Doha package delivered by the end of the year must only be the first stage in securing a full set of agreements on the Round's agenda, the European Union has said.

Angelos Pangratis, EU Ambassador to the World Trade Organization (WTO), outlined the EU's position on the Doha Round, addressing the WTO in Geneva. The Round continues to be dogged by a stalemate which suggests that a very limited package is likely to be delivered in time for a crucial WTO ministerial meeting in December.

It had been hoped that a package of deliverables for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) would be ready in time for the meeting, but this appears increasingly unlikely in any comprehensive form. As the WTO's director general Pascal Lamy recently pointed out, members are divided over this issue, with some arguing that there is little point in diverting the Organization's energies in this way ahead of December. There is also a wider debate concerning the work on Doha which will take place next year, and Pangratis said that this needs to be seen as a priority for the coming weeks and months.

On the question of LDC deliverables, Pangratis said that the needs of LDCs remain pressing, with WTO members possessing a collective responsibility to deliver on them. He said that agreement remains that the nucleus of any December package must be a set of issues of direct interest for the LDCs. According to Pangratis, within this nucleus, certain other issues - including Rules of Origin, LDC services waiver and, primarily, Duty-Free-Quota-Free (DFQF) - ought to be doable without payment for anyone, as long as all main players make a contribution. Pangratis stressed that a real difference can be made through improved market access for the LDCs, with the associated costs at a minimum.

Pangratis added that only as a second step should members be considering the feasibility of the "plus" components of the LDC plus package. He said that the EU believes that certain outcomes would be possible if the political willingness was there, based on the consultations held so far. Pangratis added that moving forward on fisheries subsidies and on environmental goods could be conceivable in time for December. Overall, Pangratis said, the EU endorses the WTO's leadership's suggestions on the way forward: namely, working on non-Doha issues, considering the post-December agenda, and maintaining work on possible LDC-focused deliverables that can respond to the aspirations of LDCs.

Turning to future work on Doha, Pangratis said that the EU has made it clear that any December package would be just the first stage on the path towards agreements on all issues on the Doha negotiating agenda. The WTO must therefore begin structured reflections about its work programme beyond the end of 2011, and must attempt to build on what has already been achieved. In addition, a proper examination of what has been holding negotiations back is required. Nonetheless, Pangratis urged that members must be mindful that such a debate must be structured in in such a way that it does not lead to a prolonged void in the negotiating agenda of the organization. This, he said, could create new risks for the WTO system, including feeding the temptation to seek solutions outside of the multilateral trading system rather than inside.

The EU also wishes to see the impasse over the Non-agricultural market access (NAMA) negotiations solved. As Pangratis said, the negotiations have been the main stumbling block to concluding the full Doha single undertaking. Lastly, Pangratis noted that the EU hopes to see restraint on increases to applied tariffs and the use of border measures, in order to shore up support for open markets.

The Doha Round aims to effect a change in worldwide trade barriers by seeking to cut trade-distorting agriculture subsidies, phase out tariffs on industrial goods, open trade in services, facilitate customs operations, open trade in clean technology, adjust anti-dumping rules, and offer duty free and quota free access to the exports of the world's poorest countries. According to the European Commission, an agreement could add USD167bn to global output, and increase exports by USD383bn on an annual basis after the full implementation period in 2026.

August 1, 2011

Source: Tax News