RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/GC/M/85 
11 March 2004 
 
 (04-1078) 
General Council 
11 February 2004  
 
 
 
MINUTES OF MEETING 
 
Held in the Centre William Rappard  
on 11 February 2004  
 
Chairman:  Mr. Carlos Pérez del Castillo (Uruguay) 
 
 
1. Iran – Request for Accession .................................................................................................. 1 
2. Iraq – Request for Ob server status ........................................................................................3  
3. Accession of Cambodia – Extension of time-limit for acceptance of Protocol of 
Accession  .................................................................................................................... ..............6  
4. Date of the Sixth Session of the Ministerial Conference – Communication from 
the United  States ............................................................................................................ .........6  
5. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the 
Dedicated Sessions of the Committ ee on Trade and Development.....................................12  
6. Waivers under Article IX of the WTO Agree ment – Introduction of Harmonized 
System 2002 changes into WTO Schedules of Concessions – Draft Decision ...................12  
7. Appointment of Officers to WTO bodies and Review of Chairmanships of bodies under the TNC .................................................................................................................. ......13
 
8. Graduation of the Maldives from the UN list of Least-Developed Countries ...................18  
9. Trade financing for developing countries during periods of financial crisis – 
Statement by the Director-General .......................................................................................18  
10. Working Party on the Accession of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia – 
Announcement by the Chairman ..........................................................................................19  
11. Election of Chairperson........................................................................................................ ..19 
 
1. Iran – Request for Accession (WT/ACC/IRN/1) 
1. The Chairman  drew attention to the communication from Iran in document WT/ACC/IRN/1, 
requesting accession to the WTO Agreement pursuant to Article XII.  He recalled that the General 
Council had last considered this matter at its meeting in December 2003, and had agreed to revert to it 
at the present meeting. 
2. The representative of the United States  said that the issue of Iran's accession to the WTO 
continued to be under review by his Government.  As a result, his delegation had nothing to add to its 
statement at the December meeting of the General Council. WT/GC/M/85 
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 3. The representative of Tanzania
, speaking on behalf of the Informal Group of Developing 
Countries , said that the Group took note of the stat ement by the United States, and hoped that the 
United States would complete its review soon and be able to provide a positive response on the issue 
of Iran's request for accession at the next meeting of the General Council.  
4. The representative of the European Communities  noted that this matter had been on the 
General Council's agenda many times, most recently  in December 2003.  The Community had always 
supported Iran's request to launch the accession process.   His delegation fully supported Iran’s request 
at the present meeting and wished to see it approv ed as soon as possible.  The Community's position 
on requests for WTO accession was to treat each one on its own merits, independent of political considerations.  Iran fulfilled the criteria of Article XII to launch the accession process, and starting 
negotiations on WTO accession with Iran would help to  promote reform in that country.  The basic 
WTO principles of transparency and non-discriminat ion were at the heart of good governance, which 
the Community encouraged.  In the same way, WTO involvement would also be beneficial to other 
peoples in the region as an element to encourag e and drive the process of economic and political 
reform in their countries.  The Community would therefore support similar requests from other 
countries in the future, where the relevant criteri a of Article XII were met.  His delegation was 
pleased to note that other Members seemed to  share the Community's objective concerning 
development in the Middle East and the Arab wo rld.  This approach had, for example, been 
manifested in the recent proposal for a "Wider Mi ddle East Partnership" currently under discussion in 
other fora.  
5. The representatives of China
, Cuba , Malaysia , Venezuela  and Haiti said that as members of 
the Informal Group of Developing Countries they full y supported the statement by Tanzania on behalf 
of the Group. 
6. The representative of China  said his delegation strongly supported the statement by the 
Community, which it believed would be useful to he lp address this issue.  It was abnormal in the 
WTO for an item such as this to be on the Council's agenda for so many years without any progress.  
It was time for Members to take concrete steps to find a way to solve this long-pending issue, which 
would help Iran integrate into the world economy and the multilateral trading system.  For the same 
reason, China would also support Iraq's request for observer status in the WTO under the next Agenda 
item. 
7. The representative of Cuba  said that this issue had been before the Council for a long time, 
and believed that a developing c ountry should have every opportunity to engage in the process of 
WTO accession.  Cuba therefore strongly supported the speeding up of the procedures in order to 
ensure Iran's accession to the WTO, thus enabling on e more developing country to become a Member 
of this organization, and ma king it even more universal. 
8. The representative of Malaysia  said his delegation supported the timely statement by the 
Community, as well as the statements by China and Cuba .  In line with his delegation's consistent call 
for the speedy accession of all developing countries to  the WTO, and given that the attainment of 
universal membership of the WTO was imperative to strengthening the multilateral trading system, 
Malaysia called upon the United States to respond pos itively to Iran's request.  His delegation also 
wished to underline that no political consideration shoul d impede either the appr oval of this request or 
the accession process. 
9. The representative of India  said that, as a member of the Informal Group of Developing 
Countries, India had, at many Council meetings, e xpressed its support for the accession of Iran.  India 
hoped that the process of review which the United States had been conducting for some time would 
end as quickly as possible, and that Members would be  able to move forward.  India believed in the 
membership of all countries in the WTO.  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 3 
 
 
 10. The representative of Venezuela  said that Iran should be a Member of this organization, 
thereby strengthening the role of develo ping countries in international trade. 
11. The representative of Pakistan  said that his delegation fully supported the views of previous 
speakers and hoped that Iran's accession process would commence soon. 
12. The representative of Switzerland  noted that this item had been on the Council's agenda for 
some time.  In Switzerland's view, every country or special customs territory which fulfilled the 
conditions of Article XII should be  given the opportunity to have an accession working party, it being 
understood that this did not prejudge in any way the ou tcome of the negotiations in the working party.  
Switzerland associated itself with part of the Communi ty's statement, and hoped that this issue could 
find a solution in the not-too-distant future. 
13. The representative of Indonesia  said that, like other members of the Informal Group of 
Developing Countries, Indonesia supported the accession of Iran to the WTO. 
14. The representative of Haiti  said that his delegation unreservedly supported the accession of 
Iran to the WTO, and urged Members to launch the process that would normally lead to a successful result.  Members could not keep a country out of the organization that could bring so much benefit to 
the WTO. 
15. The representative of New Zealand
 said his delegation's position was that countries wishing to 
accede to the WTO should have the opportunity to do  so.  New Zealand wished to maximize the share 
of trade that was conducted within the framework of  multilateral trade rules.  On that basis, it was 
ready, under the next Agenda item, to join a consen sus in support of Iraq's request for observer status.  
Iraq's letter spoke of facilitating its preparation fo r accession to the WTO.  As for the current item, 
Iran's request for accession had been before Member s for some years.  For the above reasons, his 
delegation wished to see an early deci sion to proceed with Iran's request. 
16. The Chairman  said that Members would have taken due note of the many statements in 
support of speeding up the process for the establishment of a working party to consider Iran's request 
for accession to the WTO.  However, it did not seem th at there was a consensus at the present time in 
the General Council that would enable it to accept the request.  Therefore, he could only suggest that 
the General Council take note of the statements and agree to revert to  this item at its next meeting. 
17. The representative of th e European Communities  asked whether his delegation could assume 
that between the present General Council meeting and the next, either the Chairman or the Director-
General would hold some informal consultations to promote consensus among the membership on this 
matter. 
18. The Chairman  said it would be his intention to inform his successor in detail of the contents 
of this discussion, and he was certain that the la tter would take the necessary steps to continue to 
discuss this issue together with delegations before the next the General Council meeting. 
19. The General Council took note  of the statements and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting. 
2. Iraq – Request for Observer status (WT/L/560) 
20. The Chairman  drew attention to the communication fro m Iraq requesting observer status in 
the General Council and its subsidiary bodies (WT/L/ 560).  In its communication, Iraq had indicated 
its intention to prepare for a subsequent re quest for accession to the WTO Agreement and had 
provided a brief description of its economy and fore ign trade regime, which was in accordance with WT/GC/M/85 
Page 4  
 
 the Guidelines for Observer Status for Governments in the WTO contained in Annex 2 of document 
WT/L/161.  It was his understanding – both from info rmal contacts he had had, as well as discussions 
a delegation from Iraq had had with a number of Memb ers over the past weeks, and about which that 
delegation had informed him – th at delegations were in gene ral prepared to give positive 
consideration to this request at the present meeting.   He therefore asked if the General Council was in 
a position to grant the request from Iraq.  
21. The General Council agreed
 to grant Iraq's request for observer status in the General Council 
and its subsidiary bodies. 
22. The representative of Iraq , speaking as an observer , said it gave his delegation great pleasure 
to come to Geneva and to thank Members on be half of the Government and people of Iraq for 
accepting this request for observer status at the WTO.   This was an important step for Iraq towards 
integration into the global economy.  After decades of isolation, Iraq was beginning to rejoin the 
international community, and this decision would sen d a positive signal to the people of Iraq that they 
were welcomed back and that the world really cared  about their welfare.  Since the downfall of the 
previous regime, Iraq had been taking rapid st eps towards instituting economic transformations, 
shifting from a centrally-planned economy to a ma rket economy that favoured private enterprise, 
economic freedom, full employment, free markets and free trade.  This included lowering tariffs, a 
foreign investment law and reform of the banking sy stem.  Iraq's oil reserves were the second largest 
in the world and its natural gas fields were the te nth largest.  Its people were highly educated and 
highly motivated.  With an economic policy confor ming to international norms and practices, those 
elements would give Iraq an opportunity to become an  active player in international trade.  However, 
there was much to be done. 
23. Observer status would help Iraq in many ways .  It would give Iraq a better understanding of 
the WTO, and would assist it in adopting WTO-consis tent laws and regulations.  Iraqis who had been 
forced into isolation by the previous regime woul d get the chance to benefit from the vast resources 
available at the WTO to learn and to build their capacity.  Iraq was undergoing a transition, and at the 
present meeting it had taken the first step on the long hard road to accession.  It was helpful that 
Members had welcomed Iraq, and his delegation lo oked forward to working with an Iraqi accession 
working party in the future.  He wished to tha nk all those who had helped and supported Iraq.  His 
delegation had been warmly received in Geneva and looked forward to having close and fruitful 
cooperation in Iraq's bid to accede fully to the WTO.  It was indeed a good day for Iraq, and Members had helped to make it that way. 
24. All other delegations who spoke welcomed Iraq's observership in the WTO. 
25. The representative of Canada
 said that he had had the opportunity to meet with the visiting 
Iraqi delegation and had been impres sed, not only by the individuals in that delegation but also by the 
thoughtful and convincing case they had made for observer status.  Canada had been pleased to 
support Iraq's request.  Canada belie ved that this move into the WTO system was an important step 
for Iraq to rejoin the international community and, through this, to begin to revive the prospects and 
great potential of its economy.  Canada also believe d it was a signal and a symbol to the people of 
Iraq that the international community stood in soli darity with their plight and their well-being, 
because ultimately, membership in the WTO was a means to an end, and the end was to improve the 
living conditions for people, not only in Iraq, but in a ll corners of the world.  Further to its support for 
Iraq's observer status, Canada also supported th e creation of accession working parties and the 
approval of observership for all interested states .  Canada strongly endorsed the goal of universal 
membership of the WTO and the importance of participation in the WTO as a cornerstone of 
economic development.  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 5 
 
 
 26. The representative of the United States  said that his delegation welcomed Iraq's request for 
observer status and the decision of the General Counc il to grant that request.  In pursuing this request, 
Iraq had made clear its commitment to the rule of law and the principles that underlay the WTO.  Of 
particular note was the importance Iraq attached to  the WTO as part of its ongoing efforts to rebuild 
its economy.  These efforts held great promise for the people of Iraq, and the United States was 
pleased to join its fellow WTO Members in collec tively welcoming Iraq as an observer in the WTO. 
27. The representative of Australia  said his delegation was pleased that the General Council had 
agreed to Iraq's request for observer status in the WTO.  Observer status would help Iraq to gain a 
better understanding of the internati onal trade framework and to facilitate its preparation for accession 
to the WTO.  It would also assist Iraq to realize its full economic potential.  Australia was committed 
to supporting the Iraqi people in their task of build ing a new democratic and prosperous country.  It 
supported Iraq's efforts to rejoin the interna tional community and the international economy.  
Involvement in international institutions such as th e WTO was an important step in this process.  
Australia had provided a number of countries with  WTO-related training, and would be discussing 
with Iraq's officials how Australia might assist in this important endeavour.  Australia was pleased to 
welcome Iraq's delegation at the present meeting. 
28. The representative of Japan  said that his Government had been supportive of the efforts on the 
part of the Iraqi people for the reconstruction of  their country and for the establishment of a new 
democratic state, and of their efforts to be reintegrat ed into the international community.  In this spirit, 
Japan would be supportive of Iraq's effort s towards eventual accession to the WTO. 
29. The representative of th e European Communities  said that his delegation hoped and expected 
that WTO participation would be beneficial to the Iraqi people as an element to encourage the process 
of economic and political reform in the country. 
30. The representative of Korea  said that Iraq had undergone dram atic changes in the recent past 
that required the attention of the WTO.  Some of the notable changes had been in trade, economic and 
political leadership, which Korea hoped would accel erate Iraq's integrati on into the multilateral 
trading system in the future.  As Iraq had indi cated in its communication to the General Council, 
observer status would assist the country to unders tand WTO rules and procedures, and would thus 
facilitate its eventual accession to the WTO.  Th e development strategy Iraq had embraced of 
encouraging economic diversification would act as a catalyst for stable macroeconomic growth and 
would facilitate the development of a vibrant private sector.  Korea hoped that Iraq's observer status in 
the WTO would support its development efforts a nd encourage its people.  In supporting Iraq's 
observer status request, his delegation hoped and exp ected that other countries seeking observer status 
or accession would have their cases dealt with expeditiously. 
31. The representative of India  said his delegation believed that the decision just taken by the 
General Council was one more step towards the WTO's goal of universal membership, and that this move would enrich the organization. 
32. The representative of China
 said China was aware that Iraq was currently undergoing 
substantial changes in terms of institutions, legisla tion and policies related to trade.  China believed 
those changes would be conducive to the furt her development of Iraq's trade and economic 
cooperation. 
33. The General Council took note  of the statements. WT/GC/M/85 
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 3. Accession of Cambodia – Extension of time-limit for acceptance of Protocol of Accession  
(WT/GC/77, WT/GC/W/525) 
34. The Chairman
 drew attention to the communicati on from Cambodia in document WT/GC/77, 
in which it had requested an extension of the time- limit for the acceptance of its Protocol of Accession 
until 30 September 2004, for the reasons it had outlined.  He also drew attention to a draft decision in 
document WT/GC/W/525, which had been circulated to facilitate the General Council's consideration 
of this request.  He proposed that, in accordan ce with the Decision-making Procedures under Articles 
IX and XII of the WTO Agreement agreed in November 1995 (WT/L/93), the General Council adopt 
the draft decision in WT/GC/W/525. 
35. The General Council so agreed .1 
36. The representative of the Philippines , speaking on behalf of the ASEAN Members , said these 
delegations welcomed and supported Cambodia' s request for extension of the time-limit for 
acceptance its Protocol of Accession until 30 Se ptember 2004.  As a le ast-developed country, 
Cambodia was vulnerable to challenges in faithfully carrying out its commitments in the WTO.  The 
fact that a functioning national assembly had yet to be formed in Cambodia was one of these 
challenges.  However, this was a temporary a nd surmountable setback, and the Government of 
Cambodia had already prepared all of the necessar y documents and had initiated domestic procedures 
to ratify the Protocol.  It was clear that Cambodia' s resolve to join the main stream of active Members 
in the WTO was by no means diminished and conti nued to be strong.  ASEAN welcomed the General 
Council's decision to grant Cambodia's request.  Canbodia was the first LDC to accede to the WTO, and ASEAN was grateful for their flexibility an d compassion shown by Members regarding this 
decision.   
37. The representative of Cambodia
 recalled that on 11 September 2003, Cambodia's Accession 
to the WTO had been a highlight of the Ministeria l Meeting at Cancún.  His delegation had expected 
that the ratification of Cambodia's Protocol of  Accession would be completed by 31 March 2004.  
However, Cambodia had to follow the political and de mocratic processes currently being carried out.  
On behalf of his Government, he wished to thank Members for their understanding of Cambodia's 
position and for their decision to approve Cambodia's request. 
38. The representative of Cuba  drew attention to an error in the date for acceptance of the 
Protocol  in the Spanish text of the draft decision just adopted, and hoped that this would be rectified 
in the final text. 
39. The representative of Japan  said that, on behalf of his Government, which had always been 
supportive of Cambodia's accession, he wished to we lcome this decision.  Japan hoped that this 
decision would lead to a an early a nd quick conclusion of this process. 
40. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
4. Date of the Sixth Session of the Ministerial Conference – Communication from the 
United  States (WT/GC/78) 
41. The Chairman  drew attention to the communication from the United States in document 
WT/GC/78, and invited that dele gation to introduce this item. 
42. The representative of the United States  recalled that in a letter of 11 January to all Members, 
the US Trade Representative had expressed the Unite d States' desire that 2004 deliver meaningful 
                                                      
1 The Decision was subsequently circulated in document WT/L/561.  WT/GC/M/85 
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 progress for the DDA.  As part of their collective effort to move the DDA forward in 2004, Members 
needed to consider the question of the timing of the next Ministerial Conference.  His delegation 
believed that agreeing to schedule the Sixth Session at the end of 2004 would give further impulse to 
Members' work.  The United Stat es appreciated the gracious offer of Hong Kong, China to host the 
Sixth Session and understood Hong Kong, China's n eed for a commitment on a date, in order to allow 
sufficient time for planning.  The United States c ontinued to favour an e nd-of-year date, and hoped 
that other Members would be helpful in moving this decision forward. 
43. The Chairman  said that in the past few weeks this issue had been consulted on and discussed, 
and a number of opinions had been expressed.  He be lieved it would be good for this important issue, 
which was on everyone's minds, to be dealt with at the present meeting.   
44. The representative of Hong Kong, China  said that in order to contribute to the multilateral 
negotiating process, Hong Kong, China had offered to host the Sixth Session.  Hong Kong, China's 
position regarding the need for sufficient lead-time for logistics preparations had been clearly stated in 
his Minister’s letter to the Director-General, circ ulated in document WT/GC/72, and repeated in his 
delegation's statement at the A ugust 2003 meeting of the General Council.  Having looked at the 
experiences of previous hosts, his authorities be lieved it would require r oughly one-year’s lead-time 
to properly organize a full-scale Ministerial Conferen ce outside Geneva.  His delegation had reiterated 
this position at the October General Council, and all had accepted this when the decision had been 
taken at that meeting on Hong Kong, China as the ve nue for that Conference.  That position remained 
unchanged.  It should therefore come as no surpri se that holding a Ministerial Conference barely 10 
months from the present time would pose tremendous difficulties for Hong Kong, China from a 
logistics point of view, although – as his delegation had mentioned to some Members informally – his 
authorities were prepared to be flexible and to ex plore the feasibility of a possible, if narrow, window 
at the very end of 2004, straddling into the new year , should the membership prefer to have the Sixth 
Session by the year end.  That said, apart from logistics considerations, Members needed to ask themselves – from a substance point of view – when  they were likely to need the involvement of 
Ministers. 
45. All recognized that timely Ministerial interven tion was crucial to the success of the Doha 
Round.  Nevertheless, all seemed to agree that the main theatre of action would and should remain in 
Geneva.  If there was no meaningful progress on su bstance in Geneva, Members could not expect 
Ministers to perform miracles by the end of the year.  Since the launching of the Round in November 2001, Members had missed practically a ll of the deadlines specified in the DDA.  At 
Cancún, Ministers had tried to break the logjam in a few difficult areas, but had failed.  Delegations in 
Geneva had been asked to complete the unfinis hed work from Cancún by mid-December 2003, and 
regrettably had failed again.  Members needed to consider carefully whether it would be prudent to 
commit themselves to another Ministerial Conference  without some reasonable assurance of success.  
If Members became obsessed at the present stage with organizing and preparing a Ministerial 
Conference, it might distract attention from the main negotiations in Geneva.  All in all, Members had 
to avoid another failure by taking a prematur e decision on the timing of the next Ministerial 
Conference.  His delegation wish to reiterate that in arriving at a decision on the timing of that Conference, Members needed to ensure that they were  ready, both in terms of logistics and in terms of 
the substance of the DDA negotiations.  His delegati on wished to listen to further views from other 
delegations. 
46. The Chairman
 recalled that during his consultations Members had indicated their clear 
decision to give momentum to the negotiating process, and there had not been any opposition per se  
to the possibility of a Ministeria l Conference in December 2004.  However, he had felt that many 
delegations believed this  would depend ultimately on the progress made between now and mid-year, 
and perhaps this was what would finally determin e whether it was worth convening a Ministerial 
Conference in December or at a late r stage.  He did not think it was a problem of whether there should WT/GC/M/85 
Page 8  
 
 or should not be a Ministerial Conference, but rath er that many delegations believed that one should 
give the negotiating process a chance.  Members needed  to work on the substance of the main issues, 
and perhaps the present meeting was perhaps not the best time to take a decision on this matter.  
Members probably needed to postpone this decision until mid-year in order to see what progress had 
been achieved by then.  He was saying this in orde r to give Members an overview of the consultations 
on this matter and the information and points of view  he had gleaned, and also to give the chance to 
delegations who had different views or who wished to opt for one or the other possibilities to indicate 
that now. 
47. The representative of Chile
 said his delegation did not have a position on this issue.  Members 
needed to keep this matter under consideration in th e next few weeks.  They also had to organize the 
negotiation process with a timetable, dates and so on, a nd thus had a lot of work to do.  Members also 
had to consider when it would be timely for the Ministerial Conference to take place.  Chile agreed that one should not rush to take a decision at the present meeting.  They needed to reflect on this, 
looking towards the future.  A Ministerial Conf erence was a very formal and costly event and 
involved a whole WTO timetable.  Members should not exclude the possibility that later in the year, if 
Ministers needed to intervene, they could be i nvited to Geneva, perhaps not in the context of a 
Ministerial Conference, but rather to discuss three or four key points in a more informal setting without the pomp and circumstance of a Ministerial Conference.  Therefore, it was not a black and white issue of holding or not holding a Ministeria l Conference, and one could perhaps seek other 
formats in which Ministers' political will could be expressed.  Such a meeting could perhaps be 
convened in the near future, in order to fulfil the necessary functions.  
48. The representative of Canada
 said his delegation shared the United States' hopes that 2004 
would see substantial progress, and all seemed to broadly share the view that this year should not be 
lost.  The US Trade Representative, by raising th e issue of the timing of the Sixth Session, had done 
Members a favour, as this was a timely issue that  Ministers and Ambassadors had to give some 
thought to.  The earlier this was done, the better,  because ultimately this was not just about a 
Ministerial Conference, but about how Members set ta rgets and their pace of work in 2004.  It was 
also important for the Members' constituencies to un derstand what their timetable and schedule were.  
Canada was sympathetic to the desire of some Members to begin the planning of the Sixth Session, but at the same time shared the Chairman's assessment.  Canada hoped that Members would not say 
no to the US proposal at the present meeting, becau se Members needed to keep  alive the possibility of 
a Ministerial Conference in 2004.  However, as th e Chairman had summarized, it would be realistic 
and helpful for Members to be guided by the progres s they would achieve, because while a Ministerial 
Conference could help focus the organization, the setting of a date was not the only inducement to making progress.  The ability to move and to bridge  the existing divides on issues was essential to the 
kind of discipline and progress Members hoped to ma ke in 2004.  This was why Canada earnestly 
sought to get back to work.  The negotiating groups would soon start up again formally, with the 
appointment of officers at the present meeting, a nd as these new Chairs began their work, Members 
should continue to consult, both formally and inform ally, so as to offer the best possible opportunity 
for forward movement and progress.  This should be a work in progress, but it should definitely be on 
all Members' radar screens.  Hong Kong, China had indicated that it needed sufficient time to plan 
and prepare a Ministerial Conference, and Canada unde rstood the need of any host country to prepare, 
but it also supported Chile's urging that Members perhaps consider the possibility of Ministers 
meeting in Geneva on various or all of the issues. 
49. The representative of Malaysia
 said his delegation supported the idea of a Ministerial 
Conference to help Members focus their efforts a nd identify the critical issues Ministers could help 
them resolve.  Setting a date for this would prov ide a milestone that all could work towards.  
However, Members needed to take due note of the concerns raised by Hong Kong, China regarding 
the logistics of preparing such a meeting.  WT/GC/M/85 
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 50. The representative of th e European Communities  said that his delegation, like others, was 
pursuing decisive progress in 2004 in the DDA nego tiations.  First and foremost, progress should be 
made in the Geneva process by the General C ouncil.  Members should build on the constructive 
momentum the membership now shared.  The Community hoped that Members could achieve 
meaningful progress in the next few months.  The Geneva process should be accompanied by 
appropriate capital-based and Ministerial involve ment.  The Community welcomed the numerous 
Ministerial contacts that were taking place during February and wished to thank the Director-General for the active role he was playing in those contacts.   His delegation hoped that within a few months, 
Members would be in a position to decide on the further roadmap – including the possible convening of a Ministerial Conference – and even hoped that such a Conference could be convened for a date 
earlier than the week between Christmas and the Ne w Year.  It was paramount that when such a 
Ministerial Conference was convened, Members had a precise idea of what they could expect from it, 
and that there was also a reasonable perspective th at it would be successful.  His delegation agreed 
with Chile and Canada that meaningful progress coul d also be made outside a full-fledged Ministerial 
Conference.  Members knew from experience in the Uruguay Round that Ministerial involvement 
could be organized in different ways.  The Comm unity wished to thank Hong Kong, China for its 
offer to organize the next Ministerial Conference,  and hoped that offer remained on the table. 
51. The representative of Morocco
 thanked the United States for having put this item on the 
agenda.  Morocco was fairly flexible regarding th e substance of this issue, but nonetheless had given 
some thought to the impact – likely negative – that would result from no decision being taken in the present situation.  He could well imagine the press headlines if no deadline was set, if no dates were 
decided and if Members simply found themselves navi gating without any clear plan.  After the failure 
in Cancún, all had tried to understa nd why that had occurred.  One of  the reasons seemed to be that 
WTO Ministerial meetings were overburdened and thus became perhaps too politically charged.  
Ministers did not have the time to deal with and r esolve all the issues on the agenda.  Thus, the idea 
had emerged that Members should perhaps consider  trying to lighten the programme drawn up for 
Ministerial Conferences.  Members were now asking themselves what sort of progress had to be 
achieved before a decision was taken on when to ho ld a Ministerial Conference.  This was where the 
risk lay, because a new concept was being introdu ced.  Ministers would never meet unless there was 
progress in the negotiations.  Members seemed to have  forgotten the Doha Round, and his delegation 
was surprised that in the statements thus far, no one  had spoken of the risk of putting off deadlines.  It 
seemed that such things were becoming rather commonplace, which was of great concern to his 
delegation. 
52. Morocco favoured taking a positive decision at the present meeting, for the simple reason that 
if Members programmed a Ministerial Conference at the end of the year, this in itself would surely generate a form of pressure on Ministers and in capitals, so that their commitments to multilateralism 
and re-launching the negotiations would be translated  into action in Geneva.  If Members could agree 
to hold a Ministerial Conference at the end of the year, this would give Ministers – who, as a result of 
the failure in Cancún, had to re-institute dynamism in this process – an opportunity to get the machine 
going again.  There was of course a risk that th is might lead to negative results.  Nonetheless, 
Ministerial Conferences were there not simply to wi nd up a round of negotiations, but also to enable 
Ministers to take stock of what had been done, so  they could provide new direction and new impetus 
to the negotiations and encourage the negotiators in  Geneva.  To link the Sixth Session to the progress 
made in the course of 2004 would simply be to put  matters off, and there might then be no Sixth 
Session in 2005, or even 2006.  The situation should  not be tied up this way.  There was also the 
matter of the host country's preparations and the poi nts that Hong Kong, China had raised.  The need 
for the host country to have sufficient time to enab le it to organize the best possible logistics and the 
conditions that would lead to a successful conferen ce had to be taken into consideration.  Morocco 
hoped that all of the statements of commitment to the multilateral trading system would be translated 
into a political decision and into firm action that would enable the re-launching of negotiations, which WT/GC/M/85 
Page 10  
 
 seemed to be static at the moment, so that Ministers could meet, when the time came, in the best 
possible conditions. 
53. The representative of China
 said his delegation shared the Chairman's overall assessment of 
the situation, as also the comme nts and analyses by Hong Kong, China and other speakers.  China 
would have seen some merit in setting a date for the Sixth Session if negotiations were already on 
track and there were possibilities of progress or br eakthrough.  Under those circumstances, setting a 
date might add to the sense of urgency so badly n eeded.  However, with progress in the negotiations 
remaining elusive, it was appropriate for Members not  to set a date at the present stage.  Members 
should not repeat what they had done before Ca ncún, when they had not been convinced that 
Ministers would be able to solve the critical pendi ng issues.  Members could not afford a failure 
similar to that in Cancún, which had damaged the credibility of the organization.  However, if a 
framework could be agreed by mid-year, as proposed and supported by all Members, it might be easier to take a decision then.  China preferred not to  rush into such a decisi on at the present meeting. 
54. The representative of Thailand
 said that since the beginning of 2004, her delegation had seen 
encouraging signs of the deadlock breaking and of progress being made in  the negotiations – for 
example, the letter from the US Trade Representa tive to trade Ministers and his trips to many 
countries in various regions, as well as the trips by the EC Trade Commissioner to Asia.  Her delegation was certain that one would continue to see the political will to move the negotiations 
forward in a number of bilateral a nd small-group meetings that would take place in the near future.  
Therefore, the dates of the next Ministerial Conference could be set as something to aim for in the negotiating process.  The outcome of the next Minist erial meeting need not be linked to the success or 
failure of the negotiations.  Rather, that meeting should be seen as a useful forum for Ministers from 
all Members, large or small, to meet and discuss and be involved in the negotiating process, with a view to ensuring the level of ambition of the Doha  Round and the benefits of  the multilateral trading 
system.  In this regard, Ministers might also be ab le to find solutions to problems not yet solved by 
Ambassadors in Geneva.  Moreover, to stimulate progress in the negotiations, Ministers might decide 
to conclude ahead of schedule the issues that we re less contentious and to set them aside for 
implementation at a later stage, when the negotia tions on all issues were completed and could be 
enforced as a single undertaking. 
55. The representative of Singapore
 said that like other delegations, Singapore did not want 2004 
to be a lost year.  For this reason, it welcomed the recent initiative by the US  Trade Representative to 
try to jump-start the stalled negotiations.  The latter had provided some useful ideas on a number of 
substantive issues on the DDA.  Singapore had taken not e of the statements by other delegations that 
they too wished to engage and to facilitate progress on the DDA in 2004.  While it remained unlikely 
that the Doha Round could be concluded by the end of 2004, Members should at the very least take 
the time available this year to put the process firmly  back on track, and in particular before the key 
Ministers who had played a pivotal role in driving the process left their posts.  For this reason, his 
delegation fully supported the idea of holding the Sixth Session later in 2004, to try to settle the 
modalities of negotiations and to lock in the gains ma de thus far in the negotiations.  Without a target 
date for the next Ministerial Conference, it was difficult to envisage serious engagement on the key 
issues in Geneva in the coming months. 
56. The representative of Jamaica  said his delegation fully supported the efforts being made at 
various levels to re-invigorate the Doha Round and especially to re-launch the formal negotiating 
process.  Jamaica had given careful consideration to  the date of the Sixth Session and believed it was 
essential that the next Ministerial Conference be successful.  However, Jamaica was not persuaded 
that it would be desirable to have a Ministerial Conference in 2004, given the current state of the 
negotiations and the lead time necessary for prepar ing a Ministerial Conference, as noted by Hong 
Kong, China.  That being said, if Members wished to wait until mid-year to take a decision on this 
issue, Jamaica would not stand in the way.  Howeve r, his delegation was of the firm view that the  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 11 
 
 
 timing of a Ministerial Conference would require a clearer picture of the progress in the negotiations 
and of the decisions and/or action the next Minister ial would need to take.  At the present juncture, it 
appeared that this might be more likely to be the case in 2005, when a Ministerial Conference would 
normally need to be held in any event. 
57. The representative of Cuba  said her delegation had noted the statements by the previous 
speakers, and believed Members should draw some lessons from their past experience.  Cuba had 
carefully considered the issue a nd believed that Members should not launch into a Ministerial 
Conference process without having resolved before hand in Geneva the substantive aspects of the 
problems.  Until Members could see clear progress on the substantive elements of the DDA, they 
would not be in a position to convene Ministers for an  event of this nature.  A delicate balance on all 
issues in the DDA had been struck in the Doha Declaration.  Cuba saw this as a whole, and not 
something with specific isolated issues, some of which might see more progress than others.  All issues were linked to development, and this constituted an overall global whole. 
58. The representative of Colombia
 said that her delegation well understood the points made by 
some that Members should take time to think th is matter over.  Howeve r, Colombia was very 
concerned at having missed the specific deadlines and timeframes that had been established in the 
DDA, and at the impact this could have on the process in Geneva.  For this reason, Colombia attached 
great importance to keeping this matter on the agenda  in order to provide an opportunity to explore 
alternatives.  Some interesting suggestions had b een made at the present meeting and Members should 
build on these.  In any case, her delegation did not  favour having the process in Geneva indicate when 
Members should ask for Ministerial intervention.  The signals that had been received from various 
partners provided sufficient optimism that a cal endar could be established in the coming days. 
59. The representative of Hungary  joined others in thanking the United States for putting forward 
this proposal, and also wished to thank Hong Kong, China for hosting the next Ministerial 
Conference.  A number of arguments had been made which basically reflected two sets of views.  On the one hand, some had emphasized the importance of taking a decision at the present meeting, 
especially given the expectations of the outside worl d.  On the other, some considered that progress 
had first to be made in Geneva, and that a decision could only then be taken on the date of the next 
Ministerial meeting.  Hungary shared the latter vi ew, because it believed that a further failure would 
be a serious blow to the organization, and that Me mbers thus had to be quite sure there was a high 
chance of success before deciding on such a meeti ng.  Questions had been raised as to what 
delegations in Geneva s hould do now, and whether the involvement of Ministers would be needed at 
an early date.  Members had received a mandate fro m Cancún with a 15 December deadline to agree 
on a text containing frameworks.  As the Chairman  had summed up at the December meeting of the 
General Council, good progress had been made in clar ifying views, but it had not been possible to 
complete the mandate.  However, there did seem to be a readiness on the part of practically all delegations to continue this work.  Members th erefore were still working under the mandate given 
them by Ministers at Cancún, and had to do their utmost in the coming period to try to fulfil that 
mandate.  Hungary hoped that a successful outcome could be achieved before mid-year, and also 
shared the views of a number of delegations about remaining flexib le on the possibilities of the date 
and type of Ministerial involvement, as men tioned by the Community, Chile and Canada. 
60. The Chairman
 said that it was clear from the discussion that a number of elements would 
need to be considered before the General Council c ould take a final decision on the date of the next 
Ministerial Conference, and that Members would have to  come back to this issue at a future meeting.  
He was certain that this was a matter on which his successor would be consulting with delegations. 
61. The General Council took note  of the statements and agreed  to revert to this item at a future 
meeting.   WT/GC/M/85 
Page 12  
 
 5. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the Dedicated 
Sessions of the Committee on Trade and Development  
62. The Chairman
 recalled that at its meeting in Febr uary and March 2002, the General Council 
had taken note of a framework and procedures fo r the conduct of the Work Programme on Small 
Economies, under which this Work Programme w ould be a standing item on the General Council's 
agenda.  The framework and procedures also pr ovided that the Committee on Trade and Development 
would report regularly to the General Council on th e progress of work in its Dedicated Sessions on 
this subject. 
63. Mr. Mansour (Tunisia), Chairman of the Dedi cated Sessions of the Committee on Trade and 
Development , said that the work relating to small econom ies was ongoing within the WTO, even if 
the Dedicated Session of the Committee on Trade and Development (CTD) had not met since the 
report he had presented to the General Council on 15 December.  The issues linked to trade – specifically to small economies – had been consider ed, as provided for by the mandate of the Doha 
Declaration, and this educational process had led Members to submit specific proposals in order to 
further integrate small and vulnerable economies into  the multilateral trading system.  At the most 
recent Dedicated Session, Members had agreed to conti nue to work on what had been begun, in order 
to fulfil the Doha mandate.  Members had theref ore asked the proponents to make further proposals 
which would take into account the comments made at the Dedicated Sessions and also in the bilateral 
contacts the proponents had had with interested dele gations, and to revise the proposals contained in 
document WT/COMTD/SE/W/3, so that Members c ould consider the proposals in a more detailed 
manner at the next Dedicated Session.  The authors of the proposals were currently considering these 
suggestions in order to present a document, containi ng certain amendments of the proposals made, to 
the next meeting in order to further integrate small and vulnerable econom ies into the multilateral 
trading system.  Furthermore, Members had also agreed to study any additional proposal Members might wish to present, including specific suggestions to solve problems linked to trade in land-locked 
developing countries.  The date of the next Dedicated  Session remained to be confirmed, in the light 
of the progress made by the authors and the availability of his successor. 
64. The General Council took note
 of the report by the Chairman of the Dedicated Sessions of the 
Committee on Trade and Development. 
6. Waivers under Article IX of the WTO Agreement – Introduction of Harmonized System 
2002 changes into WTO Schedules of Concessions – Draft Decision (G/C/W/477) 
65. The Chairman  drew attention to the draft Decision in G/C/W/477. 
66. Mr. Hovorka (Czech Republic), Chairm an of the Council for Trade in Goods , said that at its 
meeting on 26 January 2004, the Council for Trade in Goods had approved the draft waiver decision concerning the introduction of HS2002 changes into  WTO schedules of tariff concessions contained 
in document G/C/W/477, and had recommended that  it be forwarded to the General Council for 
adoption. 
67. The Chairman
 proposed that, in accordance with the Decision-Making Procedures under 
Articles IX and XII of the WTO Agreement ag reed in November 1995 (WT/L/93), the General 
Council adopt the draft Decision in document G/C/W/477. 
68. The General Council took note  of the statement and so agreed .2 
                                                      
2 The Decision was subsequently circulated in document WT/L/562.  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 13 
 
 
 7. Appointment of Officers to WTO bodies and Review of Chairmanships of bodies under 
the TNC 
69. The Chairman  recalled that in accordance with the Gu idelines for Appointment of Officers to 
WTO Bodies approved by the General Council in December 2002 (WT/L/510), he had announced the 
start of the selection process at the General Counc il meeting in December 2003, and had invited all 
delegations who wished to convey their views or sugg estions to him, individually and/or in groups, to 
do so.  He had also indicated that in accordance with  the Guidelines, he would have the benefit of the 
collaboration of Mr. Oshima, the serving DSB Chair,  and Mr. Marchi, the fo rmer General Council 
Chair.  He wished to thank his two colleagues for their assistance, wh ich had been very valuable to 
him and, he was certain, also to delegations.  He  wished to thank all Memb ers for the flexibility and 
cooperation they had shown in the concluding stage of this exercise.  He was convinced that, as a 
result, Members had been able to put together a slat e of names of the highest quality.  He recalled that 
his colleagues and he had been consulting on a slat e of names for the appointment of Chairs to the 
bodies listed in Groups 1, 2, 4 and 5 in the Annex to the Guidelines, as well as on the question of appointments to the bodies under the TNC.  They ha d consulted delegations bo th individually and in 
groups, including through group coordinators.  The se consultations had included an informal open-
ended HODs meeting on 9 February. 
70. Beginning first with the appointments to WTO bodies other than those under the TNC, he was 
pleased to be able to inform delegations that, on the basis of these consultations, there was a 
consensus on the following slate of names: 
 
General Council 
 Amb. Shotaro OSHIMA (Japan) 
Dispute Settlement Body 
 Amb. Amina MOHAMED (Kenya) 
Trade Policy Review Body 
 Amb. Puangrat ASAVAPISIT (Thailand) 
Council for Trade in Goods 
 Amb. Alfredo CHIARADIA (Argentina) 
Council for Trade in Services 
 Amb. Peter BRNO (Slovak Republic) 
Council for TRIPS 
 Mr. Joshua LAW (Hong Kong, China) 
Committee on Trade and  
  Environment  Amb. Naéla GABR (Egypt) 
Committee on Trade and 
  Development 
 Amb. Trevor CLARKE (Barbados) 
Committee on Balance-of- 
  Payments Restrictions  Mr. Giulio TONINI (Italy) 
Committee on Regional Trade  
  Agreements 
 Amb. Ronald SABORÍO SOTO (Costa Rica) 
Committee on Budget, Finance  
  and  Administration  Amb. Henrik Rée IVERSEN (Denmark) WT/GC/M/85 
Page 14  
 
 Working Group on Trade and  
  Transfer of Technology  Amb. Jaynarain MEETOO (Mauritius) 
Working Group on Trade, Debt 
  and Finance 
 Amb. Péter BALÁS (Hungary) 
 
71.  Appointments for these bodies would be for one year as usual, in keeping with the 
general rule in the Guidelines. 
72. He noted that he had not made any suggestions  for the appointment of Chairpersons to the 
Working Groups on the Singapore issues at the present stage.  This had been done purely for practical 
reasons, in order not to further complicate the task of agreeing on the slate as a whole, since 
delegations were all aware that there was no conve rgence on a number of substantive issues in these 
areas.  Not making appointments at the present time  was clearly without prejudice to the status of 
these groups or to any Member's position on that question.  As Members would recall, in his 
concluding remarks to the December General Council (under Agenda item 1), he had stated that the 
work already started would continue.
3  This meant that Members would continue to explore the 
possibilities of agreement on a multilateral approa ch on trade facilitation and transparency in 
government procurement, and that this work would be taking place at the level of the General Council 
with assistance from the Director-General and Deput y Director-General Mr. Yerxa.  Concerning the 
other two issues – Investment and Competition – these consultations could also offer at the 
appropriate point an opportunity to take up the question of what treatment they might receive in 
future.  He repeated that any such consultations w ould be without prejudice either to their outcome or 
to the position of any Member.   
73. Turning to the question of Chairmanships of bodi es under the TNC, he recalled that at its first 
meeting in 2002, the TNC had established a number of bodies to undertake work on the various 
elements of the DDA under its supervision.  Th e TNC had also endorsed certain principles and 
practices to guide its work, including that the Ch airman of the General Council would consult on the 
chairmanships of the individual bodies, and that the Chairpersons of these bodies would be appointed 
to serve up to the Fifth Session of the Ministeria l Conference, at which time all the appointments 
would be reviewed.  The Chairpersons of the bodi es under the TNC had subsequently been appointed 
by the General Council at its meeting in February  2002, following consultations undertaken by the 
Council Chairman.  In August 2003, the General Council had agreed that although these appointments 
were to be reviewed at the time of the Mini sterial Conference, given the heavy workload in 
connection with that Conference, Members would be  better placed to conduct this review at the 
following Council meeting in October.  In Oct ober 2003, the General Council had agreed that 
Members should revert to the review of these Ch airmanships once the outcome of follow-up work 
from Cancún was clear, and that consideration of th is matter should be postponed until the February 
Council.  The question of these appointments had ther efore also been taken up in the consultations.  
He had also had consultations with the Director -General in his role as Chairman of the TNC 
concerning this matter. 
74. On the basis of the consultations, includi ng the informal open-ended HODs meeting on 
9 February, he considered there was a consen sus on the following slate for these appointments: 
 
Negotiating Group on   Market Access  Amb. Stefán JÓHANNESSON (Iceland) 
 
                                                     
 
3 The Chairman's concluding remarks were  circulated in document JOB(03)/227.  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 15 
 
 
 Negotiating Group on Rules 
 Amb. Eduardo PÉREZ MOTTA (Mexico) 
 
Special Session of the  
  Council for Trade in Services  Amb. Alejandro JARA (Chile) 
Special Session of the  
  Council for TRIPS 
 Amb. Manzoor AHMAD (Pakistan) 
Special Session of the   
  Dispute Settlement Body  Amb. David SPENCER (Australia) 
Special Session of the  
  Committee on Agriculture 
 Amb. Tim GROSER (New Zealand) 
Special Session of the  
  Committee on Trade and     Environment 
 Amb. Toufiq ALI (Bangladesh) 
Special Session of the  
  Committee on Trade and    Development Mr. Faizel ISMAIL (South Africa) 
 
 
75. With regard to the duration of the appointments for the bodies under the TNC, he proposed 
that these Chairpersons be invited to serve until the Sixth Session of the Ministerial Conference.  This 
would be in keeping with the term of office for the previous appointees, which had been established 
by the TNC at its first meeting in January and February 2002. 
76. He invited the General Council to take note of his statement and of the consensus on the slate 
of names for the appointments. 
77. The representative of Bulgaria
 thanked the Chairman for his effo rts in preparing this slate and 
for the consultations he had held.  However, hi s delegation wished to express once again the position 
it had expressed at the General Council meeting in  December 2003.  Bulgaria believed it would be 
logical – and of course it supported the renewal of work in the negotiating bodies, which it felt was 
very necessary – that there be a sequencing of the step s that needed to be undertaken, and that the first 
necessary step should be to decide on the negotia ting structure Members would use for this re-
invigoration of the negotiations.  Members then had to consider what the mandate of the negotiating 
bodies should be, and his delegation had also expressed some thoughts on that.  The whole of the 
DDA should again be back on the table.  There ha d been a tendency to focus more on the market-
access issues, and the rules aspects of the negotiations had been neglected.  Bulgaria did not wish to 
see a reduction of the area of negotiation to some i ssues only – for example, to just frameworks.  
Frameworks should be adopted as a package along with  other elements of the DDA, and Bulgaria had 
repeatedly stressed that it wished to keep to the priorities and to the sequencing expressed in the Doha 
Declaration.  Therefore, there was no need at presen t to agree on a consensus on the slate of names of 
Chairpersons for the bodies under the TNC.  The slat e prepared by the Chairman would be useful, but 
what Members needed, and urgently, was a TNC mee ting where they would have to decide on these 
issues.  In any event, these chairpersons would be appointed at the meetings of the respective 
negotiating bodies.  Members would of course have to look at this matter again, once a decision had 
been taken on the negotiating structure.  His delega tion also recalled that before Cancún and at the 
December General Council meeting, there had been  a specific proposal for a negotiating body on 
implementation issues, which Bulgaria had suppor ted.  This had to be looked at as well. WT/GC/M/85 
Page 16  
 
 78. The Chairman
 said that in accordance with the Guid elines on the Appointment of Officers, 
the names of chairpersons should be proposed by the General Council Chairman and agreed at the 
Council's February meeting.  He recalled that he had proposed that the General Council take note of 
his statement and of the consensus on the slate of names for these appointments.  These officers 
would be formally elected by their respective bodies at the appropriate time.  The issue Bulgaria had 
raised related to the structure of future negotiati ons.  This was an issue which fell to the TNC and 
which Members had debated in previo us meetings of the General Counc il.  He did not consider that 
there was  any incompatibility betw een what Bulgaria had suggested was the proper sequence in this 
regard, and what he as Chairman was proposing.  He was merely asking the General Council to take 
note of his statement and of the consensus reached.   The formal appointments, as he had said, would 
take place in the respective bodies, and the ins titutional issues would be discussed in the TNC. 
79. The General Council took note  of the statements and of the consensus on the slate of names 
for the appointment of officers. 
80. The representative of the United States  thanked the Chairman for his very thorough and 
inclusive consultations on devel oping this slate of chairpersons for the WTO regular bodies and 
negotiating groups.  If Members were to make signi ficant progress in 2004 – and this certainly was 
the aim of the United States – it was essential that th ere be leadership by chairpersons who were 
committed to the success of the DD A.  Success did not mean simply a formal diplomatic success, but 
rather significant advances towards free trade and mo re open markets for and by both developed and 
developing countries.  First and foremost, this woul d require Members to reform and liberalize trade 
in agriculture by carrying out conscientiously and am bitiously the mandates for all three pillars agreed 
by Ministers at Doha.  The United States looked to  the chairs of the relevant committees – including, 
of course, the chairman of the General Council – to guide Members towards such success.  The 
chairpersons had very difficult jobs, and not the least of their challenges was to set aside their 
particular national interests in order to work fo r the collective interest of the DDA.  The present 
General Council Chairman had conducted his chairm anship in just such a fair and broad-visioned 
manner.  The United States thanked him heartily fo r his sustained, focussed and exemplary efforts 
during the past year, and looked forward to a continua tion of that tradition in the next stage of work.  
Members were fortunate that the Chairman had assembled a slate of such able and experienced 
chairpersons for the coming period.  His delegation wished to assure Members that the United States 
would provide its full support to the General Council Chair and the other chairpersons as all worked 
collectively to complete the work established at Doha. 
81. The representative of the European Communities  thanked the Chairman, as well as 
Mr. Oshima and Mr. Marchi who had assisted the Chairman in his tireless efforts in this difficult and delicate exercise of finding a slate of candidates wh ich had the support of the full membership.  He 
was aware that this was a very time-consuming task, and that in the General Council, Members 
participated in only a tiny fraction of the considerable  time spent on this matter.  This was particularly 
true given that the work on the slate had been co mplicated by the need to include candidates for the 
negotiating bodies.  The Community also wished to thank the outgoing chairpersons of the negotiating 
groups for the hard work they had done.  Members would continue to build on this work and help 
build bridges which would in turn facilitate th e further work.  His delegation wished the new 
chairpersons every success in thei r endeavours, and pledged to support them in their work.  The 
Community was pleased that the Chairman – in his e xplanation as to why he had not sought to find 
chairpersons for the Working Groups on the Sing apore issues – had made clear that this did not 
prejudge the work on these issues or the positions of Members.  The Community fully supported all of the nominees for the chairmanship s of the regular bodies and the negotiating groups.  It was clear 
from the slate that the Chairman had been looking for quality and for a very high calibre of person who knew how to negotiate and how to help Member s ensure that they made progress in 2004.  The 
slate was very balanced, and his delegation wished to  propose a vote of thanks by acclamation to the 
Chairman for the considerable work he had done during his chairmanship of the General Council.  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 17 
 
 
 82. The Chairman  said that he wished, on behalf of the General Council, to express appreciation 
to the outgoing chairpersons of all WTO bodies for th eir very dedicated work in chairing these bodies 
during the past year, which had been a particular ly demanding period, given the heavy work load 
during the preparations for and follow-up to the Cancún Ministerial Conference, in addition to 
Members' regular work.  He wish ed to commend all the chairpersons for the long hours they had 
graciously agreed to devote in the service of Member s' shared objectives.  The fact that Members had 
not progressed as much as they might have hoped in many areas did not in any way detract from the 
commitment and dedication of the chairpersons, w ho had certainly contributed to the considerable 
work accomplished nonetheless.    
83. He then recalled that, in accordance with Paragr aph 7.3 of the Guidelines for Appointment of 
Officers to WTO Bodies, the out going Chairpersons of the Council for Trade in Goods and the 
Council for Trade in Services would normally con duct consultations on th e appointment of the 
chairpersons of the bodies established under the resp ective authority of the Councils they chaired.  
Paragraph 7.3 of the Guidelines also provided that  these Chairs should announce the start of their 
respective consultation processes at the February  General Council, and should work in close 
coordination in order to ensure the efficiency of  the process and the balance mentioned in Paragraph 
3.3 of the Guidelines.   
84. Mr. Hovorka (Czech Republic), Chairman of the Council for Trade in Goods , said that in 
accordance with the Guidelines referre d to by the Chairman, he would start the consultation process 
for the appointment of chairpersons  to the bodies established under the authority of the Council for 
Trade in Goods (CTG).  He would be carrying out this process with a view to proposing and agreeing 
a balanced slate of names at the next CTG meeting,  scheduled for 15 April.  He would make sufficient 
time available to meet with any interested Memb ers and to hear their views and suggestions.  A 
specified time-period for this purpose would be co mmunicated to Members in the next few days.  
Following that, he would conduct further consultati ons as necessary.  In order to provide some 
structure for Members' deliberations on the possible distribution of chairs, based on past practice and 
the need for balance mentioned in Paragraph 3.3 of the Guidelines, he would request the Secretariat to 
distribute a chart listing the chairpersons of the subsidiary bodies of the CTG from 2001-2003.  In order to ensure the efficiency of the process and the balance mentioned, he would work in close 
coordination with the Chairman of the Council fo r Trade in Services.  In his capacity as the 
representative of the Czech Republic, he wished to  join the Community and others in expressing 
gratitude to the General Council Chairman for all he  had done during his chairmanship.  At the same 
time he wished to warmly thank the outgoing chairpersons of the other WTO bodies for their 
excellent performance and their dedication throughout their term of office.  He also wished to congratulate the new Chairman of the General Coun cil and the other incoming chairpersons of the 
various bodies, and to wish them every success in discharging their functions. 
85. Mr. Camara (Senegal), Chairman of  the Council for Trade in Services
, said that also in 
accordance with the Guidelines referre d to by the Chairman, he would start the consultation process 
for the appointment of chairpersons to the fo ur subsidiary bodies under the Services Council.  
Pursuant to the Rules of Procedure of the Services  Council (S/L/15), the election of the chairpersons 
of these subsidiary bodies should take place at the first meeting in the year and should take effect at the end of that meeting.  Therefore, at the m eeting of the Services Council on 5 December,  he had 
indicated that he would start consultations on the sl ate of chairpersons of th e subsidiary bodies at the 
beginning of 2004.  The process would be aimed at reaching agreement on a slate of names to be 
proposed at the first meeting of the Services Council in 2004, which would be on 25 March.  In order 
to ensure an overall balance of representation in th at slate, he would be undertaking the consultations 
in coordination with the Chairman of the Goods C ouncil.  He wished to thank the Chairman of the 
General Council for his tireless efforts.  His dele gation had been particularly impressed by the 
Chairman's sense of balance, commitment, dedicati on and the remarkable work he had carried out.  
The Chairman deserved the full recognition of the General Council, and his delegation wished to WT/GC/M/85 
Page 18  
 
 convey its respect and satisfaction for the work the latt er had carried out, and hoped that this work and 
those endeavours would be to the benefit of the General Council as a whole in carrying out the work 
before it. 
86. The General Council took note
 of the statements. 
8. Graduation of the Maldives from the UN list of Least-Developed Countries 
87. The representative of the Maldives , speaking under "Other Business ", said that the issue of its 
graduation from the UN list of least-developed co untries was being discussed at the relevant UN 
bodies.  Graduation was likely to affect the Maldives' trade, as well as the technical and financial assistance it received in a number of trade and relate d areas in the following ways:  a decrease in trade 
preferences – e.g., under the Everything But Arms Initiative;  a decrease in S&D treatment under the 
WTO agreements, and therefore increased obligati ons;  a decline in technical assistance by 
multilateral and regional agencies and bilateral sour ces;  and possible loss of the opportunity to 
benefit from the Integrated Framework.  In the light  of this, the Maldives wished to propose that the 
following action be taken by the WTO and Members c oncerned:  (i) that the Maldives' trading and 
development partners engage in b ilateral discussions with it on this issue;  (ii) that the trade 
preference-granting Members provide for the phasi ng-out of their unilateral preferences to an 
appropriate level within a sustainable transition pe riod, beginning from the date of graduation of the 
Maldives, instead of immediately subjecting the Maldives, upon its graduation, to the treatment 
applicable to non-LDC developing countries;  (iii) th at there be a gradual re duction of S&D treatment 
to an appropriate level within a sustainable trans ition period, beginning from the date of graduation, 
instead of immediately subjecting the Maldives, upon its graduation, to the treatment applicable to 
non-LDC developing countries;  (iv) that the Ma ldives be allowed to continue to benefit from 
technical assistance provided by the WTO, even after its graduation, and that other multilateral 
agencies do the same;  and (v) that the Maldives be allowed to benefit from the Integrated Framework 
after its graduation, especially in view of the fact that there had been recent developments within the 
Integrated Framework on possible work in th e Maldives.  His delegation was not seeking a 
substantive discussion on these issues at the present meeting, but wished them to be taken up in 
appropriate WTO bodies at appropriate times. 
 
88. The representative of Bangladesh
, speaking on behalf of the LDC Group , said the Group 
strongly endorsed the statement and request by th e Maldives.  The LDC Group was pleased that one 
of its members might be in the process of graduation from LDC status, and wished to help make this 
process of graduation the least painful possible.  In the interim period between graduation and 
becoming a full member of the developing country group, the Maldives, and any other country that graduated from LDC status, required some consider ation, and the LDC Group was pleased that the 
General Council was prepared to consider this matter. 
89. The General Council took note
 of the statements. 
9. Trade financing for developing countries dur ing periods of financial crisis – Statement 
by the Director-General 
90. The Director General , speaking under "Other Business ", recalled that when he had invited the 
Managing Director of the IMF, Mr. Köhler, and the President of the World Bank, Mr. Wolfensohn, to 
the General Council meeting on Cohe rence in May 2003, Mr. Köhler had agreed that the IMF staff 
would work with the WTO Secretariat to address the issue of availability of adequate and affordable 
trade financing for developing countries during periods  of financial crisis.  This issue had been of 
concern to Members for some time.  It had been raised with some of his predecessors, for example 
during the emerging markets financial crisis in 1997- 98, and since Doha it had been identified as a  WT/GC/M/85 
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 matter of priority in the Working Group on Trade,  Debt and Finance.  Shortly after the General 
Council meeting in May 2003, the IMF had convened a meeting of high-level experts in the area of 
trade financing, including representatives of private banks, export credit agencies, regional development banks and other intern ational organizations, to consider how lines of credit for trade 
financing might best be maintained in periods of cr isis.  The WTO Secretariat had participated in that 
meeting.  The results of that meeting had been en couraging, and had been reported in a paper recently 
prepared by the IMF and available on its website. 
91. He had invited this expert group to meet agai n at the WTO on 27 January to exchange ideas 
on how the WTO might contribute to improving the a ccess of developing countries to more plentiful 
and secure sources of trade financing.  At that m eeting, participants had discussed two areas of the 
WTO's work:  (i) the Doha negotiations on services, particularly financial services, and (ii) work 
under the coherence mandate, particularly vigilance in keeping markets open in periods of financial 
crisis and avoiding the use of trade measures th at might undermine coordinated efforts by the 
international financial community in exceptional circ umstances to maintain lines of trade financing.  
He believed that this joint initiative with the IMF had been valuable, and that it was important now 
that Members had the opportunity to discuss the matter  further.  To that end, a Secretariat report was 
being prepared and would be circulated to Member s.  Once the report was available, he believed it 
would be useful for the General Council Chairman to consult with Members on where they thought it 
would be most worthwhile to hold further discu ssions on this matter – in the Working Group on 
Trade, Debt and Finance, for example, or the Co mmittee on Trade in Financial Services, or perhaps 
the General Council.  For his part, he would follo w up on the initiative in his meetings with Mr. 
Köhler and would take due account of the view s of Members on this issue as they emerged. 
92. The General Council took note
 of the statement. 
10. Working Party on the Accession of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia – Announcement 
by the Chairman 
93. The Chairman , speaking under "Other Business ", recalled that at its meeting on 9 February 
2001, the General Council had agreed to establish a Working Party to examine the application from 
the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to accede to the WTO.  Following the adoption and promulgation 
of the Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Monteneg ro on 4 February 2003, the name of the State of 
the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had been change d to "Serbia and Montenegro".  In all other 
respects, the conditions under which the Working Party had been established, and its terms of 
reference, remained unaffected.  In the light of this, he proposed that the General Council take note 
that the Working Party on the Accession of the Fe deral Republic of Yugoslavi a would be renamed the 
Working Party on the Accession of Serbia and Montenegro, with immediate effect. 
94. The General Council took note  of the statement. 
11. Election of Chairperson  
95. As the outgoing presiding officer of the General Council, the Chairman  expressed gratitude to 
all Members for the tremendous support he had re ceived from them throughout this long and difficult 
year.  This had been a source of permanent encourag ement, which he greatly valued and appreciated.  
It had been a very gratifying experience, both at  the professional and human level, and he was taking 
with him some very good memories.  Obviously, in the course of 2003 there had been areas of light 
and areas of shade, and he had shared with Member s the disappointment linked to the lack of progress 
on certain essential issues and the failure of the Mini sterial Conference in Cancún.  Nonetheless, a lot 
of progress had been made since Cancún, and altho ugh Members had not been able to fully get the 
process back on track, there had been a certain amou nt of progress, and there was a firm commitment 
on the part of all to achieve further progress.  In his view, Members had reached a phase where the WT/GC/M/85 
Page 20  
 
 key points were much clearer and where possible solu tions were also beginning to emerge.  What was 
needed now was to translate the general statemen ts of commitment to the Round and multilateralism 
into specific and concrete negotiating positions.  Fo r this purpose, Members would need leadership 
and determination in order to find common area s of understanding, and would also need the 
understanding and flexibility that would enable them to incorporate in the final results the positions of 
all concerned and, in particular, the positions of the developing countries.  These various ingredients 
had been absent from the process so far, and would be  essential in order to achieve substantive results 
in 2004.  He was among those who believed Memb ers still had a window of opportunity – in the 
course of the first half of 2004 – to make progress.  It was essential that Members put this window of 
opportunity to good use, and he encouraged them to make their best efforts to ensure that 2004 was a 
year of achievement that would enable  the Round to be re-launched.   
96. He also wished to express his gratitude to th e Director-General, with whom he had shared 
many important moments in coordinating this process,  and with whom he had developed a very strong 
friendship.  He also wished to thank all the Deput ies and all the staff of the WTO, who on a daily 
basis had given him their support in his tasks, par ticularly those members of the Secretariat who had 
always been with him.  To all of these individuals he wished to convey a lasting word of thanks.  It 
had been a great honour for his country, as indeed fo r him personally, to have had the stewardship of 
the General Council in 2003.  The Ambassadors and officials participating in the WTO in Geneva 
were of a very high calibre and ha d strong negotiating talents.  In order for the current process in the 
WTO to make progress, it had to be ensured that over the next weeks these individuals would shoulder the responsibility of givi ng this Round a new impetus and a sense of urgency – through 
concrete and specific action.  This  would not be an easy task, and th ere would be important challenges 
to face, but he was confident that they would be able to face these challenges and tackle them. 
97. The General Council then unanimously elected
 Mr. S. Oshima (Japan) to the Chair. 
98. The Director-General  said he wished to express apprecia tion to the outgoing Chair on behalf 
of himself and the latter's friends a nd colleagues in the organization.  He wished to put on record how 
much the outgoing Chair's friends and colleagues had appreciated working closely with him, and how 
proud and pleased they were to have done so.  Many in the WTO had known the outgoing Chair for a 
long time, well before he had taken up the Chairmansh ip of the General Council.  They had learned to 
appreciate in him the qualities of a true professional and a true human being.  There had been many 
times, before coming to the WTO, when he had had long discussions with the outgoing Chair on 
various topics, and had always learned much from the latter's sincere, straightforward remarks and 
enlightened comments on various issues that always demonstrated his integrity, tenacity and good 
intentions for this institution even though he mi ght be representing his country.  He wished to pay 
respect to the impeccable credentials that the out going Chair had brought to the office of Chairman, 
and through which he had added to the lustre of this position.  The outgoing Chair's human touch had 
always been demonstrated in his concerns for the pli ght of the poor in the WTO.  It had been clearly 
manifested in his tenacity in handling the highly sen sitive, difficult issues of S&D treatment, when the 
responsibility of trying to move these issues forw ard had come to him.  Because of the outgoing 
Chair's contribution, there had indeed been so me movement in this area prior to Cancún. 
99. The outgoing Chair had assumed the General C ouncil Chairmanship at a difficult time pre-
Cancún, and his term had included the even more difficult time post-Cancún.  The work he had done 
to keep all Members on board in the run-up to Canc ún – even in the face of no consensus on the draft 
Ministerial text – had been outstanding.  In addition,  that paper had no doubt been part of the valuable 
process of moving the work forward both at Canc ún and after.  The outgoing Chair had always 
emphasized the need to be as inclusive and tran sparent as possible, and these elements had been 
unprecedented in his consultative process.  This had su rely been appreciated by all.  He had made 
suggestions that had help ed converge minds and foster further di scussion and negotiation.  Despite the 
failure of Cancún and the ensuing disappointment, Me mbers had subsequently quickly gotten back to  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 21 
 
 
 work in an effort to get the negotiations back on track, thanks to the leadership the outgoing Chair had 
shown in conducting a very painstaking process of  cons ultations in a remarkably short period of time.  
This work had left Members with an important leg acy.  While many elements of Ministers' mandate 
for 15 December had not been achieved, the outgoing Chair's statement to the General Council on that 
date had persistently and courag eously pointed out the key areas of  negotiations all Members should 
be concentrating on, and this was an important contribution for which all should be grateful.  It had 
been drawn from hundreds of hours of painstaking co nsultations conducted with the utmost care. 
100. The gratitude Members wished to express and th e tribute they wished to pay to the outgoing 
Chair could best be shown – and the greatest honour paid to him – by urgently pursuing work in the key areas the latter had identified.  He hoped that  the outgoing Chair would remember how they had 
worked together, and through some difficult times, and that he would continue to contribute to the 
process of multilateralism and trade liberalization.  On  behalf of himself and the WTO Secretariat, he 
wished to say that it had been a great personal pleas ure to have worked with the outgoing Chair, and 
to wish him all success and happiness in future.  With  these words, he wished to present him with the 
gavel, which he had used so well. 
101. The newly-elected Chairman
 expressed his personal appreciation to the outgoing Chair for the 
latter's superhuman work in the past 12 months  – which had been a very difficult time for the 
organization – and shared the Director-General's eloquent expression of appreciation.  As the incoming General Council Chairman, he recognized that he would have much to do to continue in the 
same vein.  He thanked all delega tions for the confidence they had en trusted in him, and assured them 
of his intention to work hard to build on the outgoing  Chair's accomplishments.  In this he would need 
the help of all delegations.  The environment in  which the organization was currently operating was 
complex and difficult.  One could not be blind to th e forces at work in the international economic and 
trade arenas, which were often inimical to the rul es-based multilateral trading system.  In addition, the 
immediate focus of Members' work, the DDA, was at a crucial point.  Thanks to the hard work done 
under the outgoing Chair's leadership, all were in a position to advance the DDA.  He would work 
closely with the Director-General as the Chairman of the TNC – which would have a key role – while 
paying close personal attention to those aspects which came directly under the General Council.  
Where there was a will, there was a way, and he sensed that there was indeed political will, the 
stirrings of momentum, and a window, albeit small, of  opportunity.  He hoped to contribute to finding 
a way forward. 
102. As regards the principles that would guide  him in conducting business as General Council 
Chair, he would put a premium on transparency.  He intended to work hand-in-hand with Members 
and groups of Members, the Chairs of the regular WTO bodies and of the TNC and the negotiating groups, and the Director-General and staff of the S ecretariat.  He would make himself available and 
accessible.  Second, he would give weight to fa irness, which was an essential ingredient in the 
democratic governance of any system, including the multilateral trading system.  The rule of law was 
the best way to guarantee this.  Third, he would e ndeavour to maintain and enhance the tradition of a 
business-like conduct of the affairs of the organiza tion.  Lastly, but not exhaustively, he would 
dedicate himself to serving the cause of the rules- based multilateral trading system, the WTO and its 
membership as a whole. 
103. The representative of Costa Rica
 expressed his delegation's deep appreciation for the work 
done by the outgoing Chair, a sentiment he believe d was shared by his colleagues from Latin America 
and the Caribbean.  The outgoing Chair's work had b een of the highest value for the organization, and 
the latter had managed to achieve the delicate bala nce between efficient and intelligent work in the 
Council, and the need for transparency.  The prep arations for the Cancún Ministerial Conference had 
been conducted in the best possible way on this basis.  Following Cancún, the outgoing Chair had with great courage gathered together what Member s had not been able to agree on and, with the 
Director-General, had conducted intensive consulta tions which had culminated in December in the WT/GC/M/85 
Page 22  
 
 best results possible under the circumstances.  The outgoing Chair had  prepared the ground for re-
launching the negotiations, and his name would always  be linked to the final successful outcome that 
Costa Rica trusted would be brokered.  He wished to express also the greatest degree of appreciation for the outgoing Chair's leadership, support and dedica tion in giving all delegations the opportunity to 
take part in the work of the organization.  Tho se remaining in Geneva would lose far more than a 
General Council Chair, and his delegation wish ed the outgoing Chair all success in his new 
endeavours.  Costa Rica also wished to congratul ate the newly-elected Chair, whose qualities ensured 
that the Council would be successfully led.  He wi shed to assure the new Chair of his delegation's 
support and best wishes for a successful chairmanship. 
104. The representative of China
 joined the previous speakers in expressing appreciation to the 
outgoing Chair for his excellent service to the organi zation.  The latter's relentless efforts in guiding 
Members in the process of negotiations and cons ultations during difficult times were greatly 
appreciated, and his remarkable contribution to the multilateral trading system would be remembered.  
All would miss his leadership and wisdom.  The outgoing Chair was a man of vision and action, 
which had been fully demonstrated in his handling of the delicate issue of S&D treatment, as well as 
the post-Cancún consultations.  China wished him we ll in his future career and also wished great 
success to the newly-elected General Council Chair. 
105. The representative of Mauritius , speaking on behalf of the African Group , congratulated the 
newly-elected Chair on his assumption of this important  role to guide Members'  deliberations at this 
critical juncture of their work.  It was encouragi ng to note that there was commitment on the part of 
all to inject new momentum into the Round in order to ensure its successful conclusion, and to engage 
in real negotiations to make 2004 a productive year.  The African countries stood ready to play their 
role in ensuring that progress was achieved, a nd to make 2004 a productive year, along with the 
support and goodwill of all Members.  Members we re taking a bold decision to re-launch the 
negotiations, and the African Group wished to unde rscore that the developmental dimension should 
be duly taken into account.  For Africa, progress on a number of key issues – such as agriculture, 
NAMA, cotton, S&D, the work programme on small economies and the other developmental 
dimensions underlying the DDA –  remained critical for a more equitable and balanced multilateral 
system.  On other issues, such as the Singapore issu es, rules and trade in services, for example, the 
African countries would continue to remain engaged so that a balanced outcome could be achieved.  
These countries had always emphasized that they had capacity constraints in some of these areas, and 
that these problems were real, and it was hoped th at these problems would be addressed.  He wished 
to reiterate the African Group's commitment to be  engaged constructively.   These countries looked 
forward to giving new impetus to the work under way.  They wished the new General Council Chair a successful tenure, and also wished to thank the ou tgoing Chairpersons of the regular bodies and the 
negotiating groups for their commitment.  Th e African Group looked forward to working 
constructively with the new Chairpersons. 
106. The African Group also wished to pay tribut e to the outgoing Chair for his tireless and 
exemplary efforts, and for his professionalism, pragma tism and availability to listen to those in Africa, 
especially the most vulnerable among them.  The outgoing Chair had always been ready to provide useful advice, and to encourage those in Africa to tr anslate their good intentions into real action.  He 
had repeatedly referred to the window of opportun ity Members had to use in order to give new 
impetus to the Round, and the African Group wished to  assure him that they would do their best to 
make constructive use of that window under the guidance of the new Chair.  The African Group 
wished both the outgoing and incoming Chairs the very best, and looked forward to seeing the outgoing Chair regularly in Geneva. 
107. The representative of Pakistan
 said it was difficult to add anything to the glowing and sincere 
remarks of the Director-General, who had reflected hi s delegation's feelings very well.  Nevertheless, 
he wished to join other colleagues in thanking the outgoing Chair for the latter's contribution to the  WT/GC/M/85 
 Page 23 
 
 
 work of the WTO.  The year 2003 had been very difficult and challenging, and the outgoing Chair had 
accepted that challenge.  There had been ups and dow ns, but he had ensured that when Members were 
down, they had been able to get up again.  As the outgoing Chair had said, there had been sun as well as shade – although no shady deals – and Pakistan thanked him for the high degree of transparency and openness that had been maintained under his chai rmanship.  Pakistan wished the outgoing Chair 
the best of luck and hoped that wherever he might be , he would be able to continue to offer advice on 
ways to move forward.  Pakistan also wished to welcome the new Chairman, who had been a very 
popular choice, and hoped that with his warm heart and cool head he would lead the General Council 
with flying colours. 
108. The representative of the Philippines
, speaking on behalf of the ASEAN Members , wished to 
extend a warm welcome to the newly-elected Chai r as he assumed the critical function of leading 
Members in the upcoming year of negotiations.  Under the latter's wise and able guidance, the 
ASEAN Members were confident that all would ach ieve the objective of balanced and expeditious 
progress towards fulfilment of the Doha mandates.  They  also wished to express their gratitude for the 
work of the outgoing Chair, especially in seekin g to move the negotiations towards a successful 
conclusion.  This had been extremely difficult  work, with seemingly insurmountable obstacles 
repeatedly cropping up to block the way towards a successful conclusion.  If Members had failed to 
achieve all of the goals set before them, it was cert ainly not due to any fault of the outgoing Chair.  
The latter had undertaken his task with dedica tion and courage under pressure, and the Philippines 
doubted whether anyone could have done a better job.  The Philippines had every confidence that the 
outgoing Chair's leadership abilities would do him justice in his endeavours in the challenging 
assignment that awaited him, and wished him every success. 
109. The representative of Argentina  said that the present meeting had been very moving for many 
who knew the outgoing Chair.  The latter was leavi ng the chairmanship of the General Council after 
an extremely trying year, which he had dealt with in  the most successful way possible.  Thanks were 
due for the outgoing Chair's great impartiality and tr ansparency – principles which all wished to see 
maintained in the organization's future work.  Th ese sentiments were certainly shared by the outgoing 
Chair's colleagues in MERCOSUR, in which – even if  there had been disagreements – all valued his 
character and personality.  Argentina also wished to  assure the newly-elected Chair of all the support 
and co-operation he would need from the Members of MERCOSUR in order to carry out his work 
which, in the coming year, would no doubt be difficult.  Argentina wished to add its voice to that of the Director-General regarding the need to transl ate words of commitment to the multilateral trading 
system into actions committed to that syst em and to balance in the organization. 
110. The representative of Paraguay
 said that after the eloquent statements made, in particular by 
Argentina conveying the sentiments of MERCOSUR,  Paraguay merely wished to underline its 
appreciation for the outgoing Chair's great efforts.  As Chair, as well as the representative of Uruguay, 
the latter had done distinguished work that had brought honour to his country and to himself.  
Paraguay also wished to assure the newly-elected  Chair of its full support and commitment to 
cooperate in the difficult and challenging role he was assuming.  The Chair's success would be 
everyone's success. 
111. The representative of Venezuela  said her delegation wished to join others in congratulating 
and thanking the outgoing Chair for his excellent wo rk and for his leadership  and transparency.  The 
latter had helped Members understand the complexity of the current work in the WTO and the need 
for all to participate, and this had enabled Member s to find renewed impetus in the complicated tasks 
entrusted to them by Ministers in Doha.  She also  wished to congratulate th e newly-elected Chair and 
to emphasize that there would be a need to react ivate in the short term all the activities of the 
organization in order to revive the negotiations.  Political will was essential to progress in the key 
areas.  Venezuela would cooperate fully in all asp ects of the agenda.  Her delegation wished to 
underline the urgent need to take into account the comments by developing countries, and that the WT/GC/M/85 
Page 24  
 
 new phase of the negotiations had to include a sense of  urgency and a recognition of the need for great 
efforts on all issues.  This would contribute to the preservation of trust in a multilateral trading system 
based on fair and balanced rules that provided opportunities for all countries who placed their hopes 
in it. 
112. The newly-elected Chairman
 asked all to pay tribute by acclamation once again to the 
outgoing Chair for the latter's great efforts and leadership. 
113. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
 
__________