WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/MIN(99)/ST/33
1 December 1999
(99-5246)
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Third Session
Seattle, 30 November - 3 December 1999Original:  English
THAILAND
Statement by H.E. Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi
Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Commerce
1. First and foremost, let me express my deepest gratitude to the Chairperson of the Ministerial
Conference, the Honorable Charlene Barshefsky, and the US Government for hosting this important
event.  I also would like to express my sincere appreciation to the Director-General of the WTO,
Mr. Mike Moore, and the Chairman of the General Council, H.E. Ambassador Ali Mchumo, as well
as the staff at the WTO Secretariat, for their tireless efforts in organizing this Conference.  And lastly,
and perhaps most important, I would like to th ank each and every individual who have spent
immeasurable time and energy, through countless formal and informal meetings, in order to preparefor this event.
Global economic situations and Thailand
2. As you are aware, it has now been almost two and a half years since the financial crisis broke
out in East Asia and spread rapidly across the globe engulfing economies large and small.  As
manifested, the result of this so called "Asia Contagi on" has not only been an abrupt reversal in East
Asia's unprecedented growth trends but also an end to the vigorous surge in the level of world trade
and investment.  By all account, the ramifications of the crisis, which is only Asian in origin, has
greatly raised our awareness of the inextricable linkages between the two pillars of the global
economic system, namely, globalization and liberalization.  More importantly, it has called into
question the philosophy of the free market and unfettered capitalism, there by posing a directchallenge to the virtue of free and fair trade as well as threatening the dynamism and success of
globalization.
3. Yet, it is evident that some signs of recovery have begun to emerge.  In the case of Thailand,
for instance, exports have grown by 3.8 per cent in the first nine months of this year and it is projectedthat we will obtain a surplus in the current account and balance-of-payments of US$11.8 billion and
US$3.5 billion respectively.  And likewise, in Sout h Korea, the year-on-year industrial production
was up by 30 per cent in June and the South Korean economy is expected to register a growth rate of
around 6-7 per cent by the end of this year.
4. It need not be said that the path to economic recovery has involved a great deal of hard work
and determination.  As you already know, since 1997, the Thai Government has been working closely
with the IMF to strengthen the fiscal, monetary, and financial disciplines, as well as to develop
decisive measures to ensure prudent spending and to restructure our financial institutions.
Preparations have also been made for further recapitalization and regulations of the financial and
banking sectors, such as the strengthening of the supervisory independence and technical capabilities
of bank supervisory role and the reformation of the capital market through the creation of newfinancial instruments so as to reduce risks.  In this connection, we have also introduced new lawsWT/MIN(99)/ST/33
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which are designed to create a legal framework to expedite the processes of corporate restructuring,
such as the new Bankruptcy Act, to encourage rapid debt restructuring negotiations, and the amended
Alien Business Law, in order to offer more busin ess opportunities for foreign investors.  And,
knowing that these reforms woul d entail painful adjustment processes and devastated social
consequences, the Thai Government has sought assistance from the World Bank and the AsianDevelopment Bank to strengthen the existing social safety net, which include numerous extensive
retraining and retooling programs as well as programs aimed at providing additional public sector
employment.
5. So far, it is clear that many of our objectives of stabilization have been met;  we have
managed to rebuild our foreign exchange reserves, stabilized the currency, and brought down the
interest rates.  As a consequence, since the middle of 1998, the policy of the Thai Government hasstarted to shift to one of growth stimulation, comprising of expenditure measures, tax reductions, and
economic stimulus packages to create employment and regenerate the economy.
6. Although there is no denying that it will take some time before the Thai economy fully
recovers, I am confident that the present economic policies and adjustment programs are sufficient toaddress the current concerns of the country.  While the immediate priorities must be to further
stabilize the Baht, create greater liquidity for the private sector, halt the levels of Non-Performing
Loans (NPLs), and lend a helping hand to the poor and the unemployed, we fully realize that the past
as well as the future success of Thailand depends crucially upon our ability to absorb and adapt to
international influences.  As such, the long-term objectives of our reforms and adjustment programsare to maximize our economic potentials and enhance our international competitiveness.  This being
the case, the core principles behind our policies are clear.  We remain firmly committed to the global
liberalization process, one with transparent rules and an appropriate regulatory framework, wherein
all are treated and can compete on an equal basis for mutual benefits.  Needless to say, any unilateral
attempt at financial restructuring and reforms on our parts, even if successful, is not likely to yieldsignificant results if market access is cut off and if other countries resort to protectionistic measures.
Hence, it is pertinent that all efforts are made to en sure that the international market place is kept open
and that there will be no backtracking on prior liberalization commitments.
The World Trade Organization and Global Trade Liberalization
7. As an internationally accepted organization whose membership has grown to 134 countries
with around 30 more countries waiting to join, the WTO has undoubtedly become a powerful catalyst
for international economic cooperation which aims at expansion of global economic growth and
development.  This is reflected in the significant achievement of the Uruguay Round of Agreement
which did not only lead to greater liberalization of trade in traditional sectors but also to the opening
of several new areas, such as Agriculture, Textiles, Services, Trade-related Intellectual PropertyRights (TRIPS) and Trade-related Investment Meas ures (TRIMs), not to mention the establishment of
the WTO itself.  Furthermore, it is apparent that the accepted rules and norms for international trading
practices created by the WTO have injected greater predictability and transparency into the
international market-place, thereby encouraging many  more nations to increase their participation in
global trade negotiations which, in turn, has contributed to the maintenance of a free and open tradingregime as well as the enhancement of the future prospects of global trade liberalization.
8. However, notwithstanding these achievements, much more needs to be done if the WTO is to
maintain its significance in the international arena – especially at this critical juncture of economic
turbulence wherein protectionistic tendencies are strong.  The WTO needs to prove to the world thatthe multilateral trading system which is based on WTO rules can and will contribute to the long term
welfare and prosperity of the world economies as a whole.  For instance, efforts must be intensified to
develop the WTO into a universal organization wherein all can participate on an equal footing.
Equally important is the need to improve the modus operandi  of the WTO through transparent rules
and well-defined procedures.  And last but not least, every attempt must be made to ensure that allWT/MIN(99)/ST/33
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WTO decisions are based on a multilateral approach, rather than a unilateral or bilateral one, so that it
is a truly democratic organization.  And, indeed, it is in successfully meeting these challenges that I
believe, and I think that you will all agree with me, that this Ministerial Conference will ultimately be
judged.
The Third WTO Ministerial Conference and the New Round
9. While there is little doubt that the Uruguay Round of trade negotiations has provided the most
comprehensive and far-reaching trading agreement in history, it is evident that the impact thereafter
has been mixed, and that some countries, more than others, have been able to reap the benefits
generated from the negotiations.  More specifically, the distribution of benefits from the process of
global trade liberalization has been in favour of developed countries more than developing and least-developed ones.  By and large, this imbalance is due, on the one hand, to the lack of resources and
knowledge among the less developed Members to fully exercise their rights and implement the
various WTO Agreements and provisions and, on the other hand, it is because several Members have
yet to fully implement the Agreements resulted from the previous rounds of negotiations in letter and
in spirit.  Thailand, for example, has yet to benefit from the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing.
10. In this context, it is therefore vital that we all attempt to develop a sufficiently broad-based
and well balanced negotiating agenda at this Conference, and in all successive rounds of trade
negotiations, not only in order to accommodate the divergence of interests among our Members but
also to ascertain that the rights and obligations, benefits, as well as costs, are distributed in anequitable manner.  To this end, there exists a number of issues that must be addressed at this
Conference and several daunting tasks that we will need to prepare for in the years to come.
11. First, among others, no efforts should be spared in pushing for greater market access in all of
the world economies.  For example, in terms of the Built-in Agenda (BIA), greater efforts should be
made for the full and faithful implementation of the Uruguay Round Agreements.  On agriculture, for
instance, there should be greater attempts on the parts of all Members, especially the developed ones,
to lower barriers to agricultural trade not only through the elimination of export subsidies and
domestic supports but also the reduction and regulation of export credits and an across-the-board
average tariff reduction – including the lowering of out-quota tariffs.  Also, quotas should be
expanded and quota management guidelines should be improved in order to create a more transparent
trading environment.  In a similar vein, on services, negotiations should aim at extending businessopportunities through the reduction and/or elimination of existing market access barriers, such as the
Economic Needs Test requirement and the opening up markets to the movement of natural persons by
increasing the transparency with respect to registration procedures, the granting of permits, and the
assessment of qualifications.  In this connection, there should also be a call to ensure that domestic
regulations, such as licensing, qualifications, and technical standards are impartial and do notconstitute unnecessary barriers to trade in services.  And in terms of market access on non-agriculture
products, attempts should be heightened to reduce and/or remove tariff peaks and escalations as well
as to adopt a comprehensive implementational approach suitable for all.
12. Second, if we are to achieve a positive and a balanced agenda, it is pertinent that particular
attention be rendered to the special needs and interests of developing and least-developed Member
countries in all trade negotiations and liberalization processes.  Given their limited financial and
human resources as well as weak institutional base, developing and least-developed countries need to
be offered special and favourable treatments so that they can meet the numerous tasks and obligations
of the WTO.  Therefore, efforts need to be intens ified to ensure the full implementation of existing
WTO provisions on special and differential (S&D) treatment.  Indeed, there still exists evidence that
he previous agreed to S&D provisions for developing countries have yet to be fully realized, such as
those pertaining to the issues of Anti-Dumping (AD), Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS), and
Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT).  Moreover, technical assistance and expertise should be granted to
developing countries so that they can gain more benefit from the WTO Dispute SettlementWT/MIN(99)/ST/33
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Mechanism (DSM).  There is little doubt that S&D treatment is necessary for these countries not only
in terms of allowing them to increase their participation in the multilateral negotiations processes but
also for them to achieve sustainable development – since trade alone is not sufficient for development
and needs to be supplemented by technological improvement, infrastructure development, education,
institutional and capacity building, and human resource development.
13. Third, there is an urgent need to make sure that the discussion and/or possible negotiations of
new issues give due consideration to the developmental needs, aspirations, and objectives of all
concerned, especially those of the developing and least-developed Members.  Accordingly, intensive
preliminary studies of the possible impact of the new issues ought to be carried out prior to the
launching of any formal negotiations.  For instance, on the proposals of a multilateral framework on
investment, reflection is still needed on the issues of definition of investment, the significance oftechnological transfer, the development dimension of the Agreement, and the approach for
liberalization of investment regime on a progressive basis.  In a similar vein, the outcome of
establishing multilateral rules of competition between developed and developing countries needs to be
further assessed.  And while trade facilitation measures and transparency in government procurement
regulations can help to enhance international trade and investment, a number of issues remain to beanswered, such as the definition and scope of the Agreement, the implementation processes, and the
review procedures.  Again, should a common agreement on these new issues be discussed, developing
countries should be offered differential and more favourable treatment in order to assist in the
transitional costs and for achieving developmental objectives.
14. Fourth, it is apparently clear that countries large and small can gain a great deal from being a
Member of the WTO.  The WTO would not only offer the much-needed sense of predictability,
transparency, and certainly in trading pursuits but also, and more importantly, access to markets and
various resources required for growth and development.  However, given the numerous amount of
substantive obligations which comes with accession, accession to the WTO can place significantburden on acceding countries, especially developing ones.  Given this context, the issues concerning
WTO accession, such as the review of trade regime of acceding countries and the schedule of
concessions should be deliberated so as to ease the difficulties of implementation as well as to
expedite the accession of non-Member countries.  In this respect, sufficient assistance should also be
offered in order to provide the opportunity to achieve rapid accession.  Undeniably, the increase in the
number of active participants in the WTO can greatly extend the scope of global liberalization, and
thus strengthen the multilateral trade system.
15. And last but not least, in today's complex and globalized international economic structure, the
importance of a coherent policy coordination among the world institutions cannot be overestimated.
Given the garmot of interrelated policy issues ranging from trade and finance to health and education
and the numerous challenges and problems that we all need to face, a coherent global policy isrequired to make sure that the agreements reach ed in all the major international forum complement
one another.  To this end, all efforts should be made to increase the level of collaboration between the
WTO and the various international institutions and agencies, such as the IMF, the World Bank, and
UNCTAD, as well as ESCAP.  Certainly, one seemingly effective measure in this area is to establish
an apparatus which would ensure greater coherence in the plans and policies of these entities.  And
this is the main reason as to why Thailand, along  with other ASEAN member countries, has proposed
that a Work Programme on Trade and Finance should be set up under the WTO.  Such an apparatus
would not only help to ascertain that internationa l trade, finance, and development plans and policies
will complement one another but also, and more importantly, make sure that agreements adopted in
other international fora serve to augment, rath er than impede, WTO multilateral liberalization
processes, and vice versa.  Indeed, we will all have another opportunity to deliberate on the
importance of greater coherence in international economic policy-making at the UNCTAD X, which,
I am proud to say, will take place in Bangkok, Thailand, from the 9
th to the 19th of February of next
year.WT/MIN(99)/ST/33
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16. And finally, it needs to be made clear that the ultimate goal of the WTO is the enhancement
of the multilateral trading system by serving as  a negotiating forum advancing multilateral trade
relations.  As such, we need to ensure that the WTO focuses mainly on trade issues.  However, this is
not to say that non-trade issues are unimportant and do not require our attention, but rather they
should be dealt with through the specific international institutions which have been created andequipped for the particular purpose.  Certainly, by linking trade issues with non-trade issues we will
not only create additional burden to the already complicated negotiations process but also jeopardize
our ultimate goal of establishing a freer global trading environment.
17. To conclude, it need not be stressed that the credibility and future viability of the WTO, as
well as the multilateral trading regime, rest primarily on how we, at this Conference, set the agenda to
sufficiently address the above issues.  We must ensure that the WTO continues to be an effectiveforum for trade negotiations by carrying out and rema ining steadfast to its commitments in letter and
in spirit.  At the same time, we need to assure th at future negotiations irrefutably lead to equitable
distribution of benefits.  Indeed, the assurance of an  evenly share of benefits will not only serve as a
confidence building measure for greater participation in the global liberalization process but also
increasing trust in the multilateral trading system.  And if we are to succeed in our pursuit of a more
open international trading environment, then we need to step up our efforts to make the WTO a truly
universal negotiating arena wherein all are treated and can participate on a "First among Equals"
basis.
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