RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE G/AG/R/8
14November 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-4840)
Committee onAgriculture
SUMMARY REPORT OFTHE SPECIAL MEETING
HELD ATINTERVALS FROM 24OCTOBER TO6NOVEMBER 1996
Note bytheSecretariat
1. TheCommitteeonAgricultureheldaspecialmeetingon24October1996,whichwasreconvened
atintervals thereafter until 6November 1996. TheCommittee adopted theagenda contained in
WTO/AIR/462.IntheabsenceoftheChairman,itwasagreedthatMrs.ApiradiTantrapornofThailand
should chair themeeting.
2. TheCommittee wasinformed thatAmbassador Tulalamba had,forreasons ofhealth, submitted
hisresignation totheChairman oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods andthatthiswould become effective
upon theappointment ofanewChairman. Delegations paidtribute toAmbassador Tulalamaba 's
exemplary chairmanship andpersonal commitment inconducting theformal andinformal work ofthe
Committee, andrequested theActing Chairman toconvey theirmessages ofesteem andappreciation
toAmbassador Tulalamba, aswellastheirbestwishes foraspeedy andfullrecovery.
3. Atitssession on24October 1996 theCommittee adopted thedraft report indocument
G/AG/W/27 ontheMarrakesh Ministerial Decision onMeasures Concerning thePossible Negative
Effects oftheReform Programme onLeast-Developed andNetFood-Importing Developing Countries.
Thereport asadopted bytheCommittee (subsequently issued asG/L/125) wassubmitted totheCouncil
forTrade inGoods.
4. Atitssession on24October 1996 theCommittee alsoconsidered adraftofitsreport forthe
Singapore Ministerial Conference ascontained indocument G/AG/W/28, including anamendment
toparagraph 8thereof proposed bySwitzerland andatextsubmitted bytheEuropean Communities
asanalternative toparagraph 12andtotheproposal bytheCairns Group inparagraph 13fora
programme ofpreparatory work inconnection withArticle 20oftheAgreement onAgriculture.
Followingaseriesoffurthermeetingsandinformalconsultations,theCommittee,on4November1996,
agreed totheamendment proposed toparagraph 8and,on6November 1996, adopted thereport as
awhole onthebasisofacompromise textproposed bytheActing Chairperson. Thereport asadopted
bytheCommittee (subsequently issued asG/L/131) wassubmitted forthwith totheCouncil forTrade
inGoods.
5. Astatement made bythedelegation ofArgentina following theadoption oftheCommittee 's
report isreproduced intheattachment tothisreport.
./.G/AG/R/8
Page2
Attachment
Original: Spanish
Statement bytheDelegation ofArgentina following theadoption,
on6November 1996, oftheReport oftheCommittee on
Agriculture fortheSingapore Ministerial Conference
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Following express instructions fromourGovernment, Argentina joined inapproving thereport
inspite ofitsclear dissatisfaction with theprogress made bytheCommittee inadopting its
recommendations forSingapore.
Notonlydothese recommendations show verylittleambition asregards thefuture, theyare
notevencompatible withthecurrent international situation oftheagricultural sector. After aperiod
ofsome recovery inprices andrevenues ininternational tradeofagricultural products, resulting from
unfavourable weather conditions, amajor decrease inprices hasbeenobserved recently, aswellas
thefirstindications ofapotential subsidies war.
These subsidies aregoing tounnecessarily harm thebudgets ofthecountries offering those
subsidies andtheirownconsumers. They alsoputatriskthefuture ofthose whothink thatreceiving
agricultural products atlowprices constitutes apositive contribution fortheirbalance ofpayments,
ignoring thefactthatthislevelofprices prevents them forstimulating theirdomestic production.
ForArgentina, therecommendations oftheCommittee areyetanother episode inthelongfight
toachieve thefullintegration ofagriculture inthegeneral disciplines oftheWTO. Wewillcontinue
tofightwithflexibilityandinaconstructivespirit,butfirmly,inordertoeliminateagriculturalsubsidies.
Ourdelegation willdowhatever ispossible sothatthefuture consensus decisions ofthisCommittee
aresupported bycompromises withgreater substance thanwhatwehavejustapproved.