URFIG Document - Analysis about WTO
This
document presents the implementation schedule for the decisions taken during the
WTO Ministerial Conference which took place in Doha last November (for those who
seek further information about the various episodes of the conference, please
refer the daily accounts I disseminated during the conference from the capital
of Qatar).
Subjects
to be negotiated within the framework of a single undertaking (diplomatic
expression which means “there is
agreement on nothing until there is an agreement on everything”) to be
completed on the 1 January 2005:
-
implementation (par 30 of the Ministerial
Declaration)
-
agriculture (par 13)
-
services (par 15)
-
tariffs (par 16)
-
subsidies (par 28)
-
regional trade agreements (par 29)
-
environment (par 31)
Issues
which are the subject of specific negotiations – to be completed by the end of
May 2003:
-
the dispute settlement understanding (par 30)
+
before the 30 June 2002: the GATS: presentation of initial requests for specific
commitments (par 15)
+
prior to the 31 December 2002:
TRIPS
Agreement: compulsory licences: (par 6 of the declaration on the TRIPS Agreement
and public health): the problem faced by countries which have an insufficient
production capacity and which are forced into using parallel import techniques.
Conclusion of the negotiation agreed upon in Doha if no agreement is
reached in situ.
Battle
against dumping: the implementation decision (par 7.2 and 7.4).
This concerns the current agreement, the implementation of which is
harmful to developing countries. The
expression “implementation decision” nearly always concerns a request from a
developing country confronted to an unbalanced application of a current
agreement.
Outstanding
implementation issues (par 12.b): developing countries had requested that these
be settled before negotiations on new issues be undertaken
Outstanding implementation issues are not the subject of a specific
mandate of the Doha conference. Developing
countries have been “promised” that these issues will be the subject of
discussions and that a report of these discussions will be available before the
end of the year.
+
before the 31 January 2003:
Textiles:
implementation decision (par 4.4 and 4.5)
Special
and differential treatment: implementation decision (par 12 i and ii)
Subsidies:
implementation decision (par 10.3)
+
Before the 21 March 2003 :
Agriculture:
commitment modalities to be decided upon at a later stage (par 14)
GATS:
presentation by States of initial liberalisation offers of their services ( par
15)
+
10-14 September 2003: Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference in Cancun (Mexico):
-
report on the progress of negotiations
-
decisions taken by “explicit consensus” (par
20-27) on the modalities of negotiations (including the opportunity and the
date) concerning the Singapore issues (investment, competition, transparency in
government procurement and trade facilitation)
-
environment (par 32): report on the necessity to
clarify WTO rules – including that of launching negotiations – with regards
to the effect of environmental measure on market access; report on the impact of
TRIPS provisions with regards to labelling requirements in view of protecting
the environment.
-
agriculture (par 14): States submit projects
concerning global lists.
+ 1 January 2005: end of negotiations as a single undertaking.