WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/WGTCP/W/242
28 July 2003
(03-3997)
Working Group on the Interaction
between Trade and Competition PolicyOriginal:  Spanish
COMMUNICATION FROM CUBA
The following is the final text of a statement made by the delegation of Cuba to the Working
Group meeting on 26-27 May 2003.
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Elements Contained in Paragraph 25 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration
including matters raised and questions posed in 2002
to which delegations wish to revert
Thank you, Mr Chairman,
First of all, I should like to thank the delegations that have introduced their documents today.
We also greatly appreciate the work done by the Secretariat in drawing up the two studies presented.
We hope that all these documents will be translated as soon as possible into both Spanish and French
so as to enable our capitals to provide detailed responses to them.
Furthermore, I should like to express my delegation's support for the statements made by the
delegations of India, Kenya and Egypt, which have highlighted many of the concerns and doubts that
my own country shares on the aspects under discussion.
My delegation has taken part in previous meetings and conveyed its views on the different
themes discussed under this agenda item.  We have expressed our concerns and misgivings.  My
delegation now wishes to make a general statement on how we see the Group's working process and
the course that it might take in the future.
Mr Chairman, as you know, the Doha Ministerial Declaration in paragraph 25 mandates the
Group to undertake, in the period leading up to the Fifth Session, a process of clarification on a
number of subjects relating to the interaction betw een trade and competition policy.  That paragraph
itself includes a non-exhaustive  list of subjects, and then goes on to state clearly that " [f]ull account
shall be taken of the needs of developing and least-developed country participants and
appropriate flexibility provided to address them ".
The contents of paragraph 25 clearly indicate to my country that:
1. Clarification of these subjects and their implications for trade, competition policy and
development  is indispensable  if the Members are to make an effective and satisfactory
evaluation of the proposals submitted to this Working Group;WT/WGTCP/W/242
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2. the process of clarification should focus on how to fulfil the objective of satisfying
development needs and the interests of the developing countries;
3. such needs and interests are closely linked w ith the flexibility to be provided for the
developing countries.
In our opinion such flexibility should be directed to maintaining the sovereign right of each
developing country to choose when and how  to establish its competition policy and what kind  of
competition policy it should have, and also to adopt policies and measures designed to preserve and
strengthen the national and international competitiveness of its enterprises and to modify them
whenever necessary.
The Cuban delegation has reflected on the discussions held in this Working Group so far, and
we believe that it is necessary to further clarify whether the proposals made in this field would
provide the forms of flexibility described.
Furthermore, there are still major differences of opinion and many unresolved questions, of
which the following are a few examples:
• No consensus has been reached on the advisability of applying the core principles of
the WTO to a possible agreement on competition nor how they would be applied in
practice.  Proponents in this area have argued that a detailed description of how thecore principles would operate is not necessary.  However, my delegation believes that
the way the core principles would operate in practice in the field of competition
policy is of critical importance  in assessing the implications for development and
that such questions therefore require greater clarification.  In this connection, we are
unable to share the view expressed today by the delegation of the EuropeanCommunities that only when we advance further into the negotiations will we be able
to examine certain points more fully.
• Considerable doubts remain, especially as to how best to reconcile the principle of
non-discrimination with the need to establish exceptions and exemptions, primarily
for the developing countries.  There is no consensus on the meaning of proceduralfairness or on the content and scope of the principle of transparency in the
implementation of competition law.
• No attempt has been made to meet the concerns of those Members which still do not
have competition policies, laws or authorities and which have little experience in this
field, nor has any solution been found as to how such Members might undertake
commitments with regard to  competition.  Such countries, given their lack of
experience, would be at a disadvantage in negotiations, which is why the Secretariathas been requested to undertake a study on this matter.
• Several delegations have repeatedly pointed out how difficult it would be in a
multilateral context to standardize competition rules, since what might be regarded asan anti-competitive activity by a developed country might be a necessary activity for
attaining a developing country's essential objectives, and it has not yet been madeclear how such dissimilar interests could be reconciled while at the same time
safeguarding the vital interests of the developing countries.WT/WGTCP/W/242
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• The technical assistance provided so far has been little more than educational in
nature and is not suited to the low level of knowledge in this area of the 50 or soMembers which have no competition laws, authorities or regimes.
Mr Chairman, taking stock of what has been done so far, we need to recognize that we are
still far from concluding the task entrusted to us of studying this matter .  The developing
countries are calling for greater clarification, during the study phase, of each of the subjects in
question, and believe that we should not proceed beyond the present phase until those objectives
have been achieved .
Finally, we should like to stress the importance of clarifying each of the questions raised by
the developing countries before deciding on possible negotiating modalities.
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