WORLD TRADE WT/MIN(96)/ST/37
10December 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-5205)
Original: English MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Singapore, 9-13December 1996
HUNGARY
Statement byH.E. Mr.Szaboles Fazakas
Minister forIndustry, Trade andTourism
Firstofall,Iwould liketoexpress thegratitude oftheHungarian delegation totheGovernment
ofSingapore foritswarm hospitality andtheexcellent working conditions. Thefactthatthefirst
Ministerial Conference oftheWTO takes place inyourcountry, Mr.Chairman, isarecognition of
theoutstanding roleSingapore hasalways played inthisOrganization.
Wehighly appreciate thepersistent efforts ofMr.Ruggiero made inthepreparatory phase.
Iamconvinced thatdespite some stillunresolved issues wewillsucceed inourpresent undertaking
andbeabletosendastrong message totheinternational business community: theimplementation
oftheambitious results oftheUruguay Round isontherighttrack, anditisourresolve tocontinue
thisprocess withrenewed energy.
Looking backtothework ofthelasttwoyears, asitisreflected inthereports ofthevarious
councils andcommittees, itseems tousthatsignificant progress hasbeenmade inalmost allfields
ofimplementation. Forsome timethisprogress hasnotbeen obvious, asgroundwork isnever
spectacular. However, nowoverviewing alltheresults wecanstatewithacertain satisfaction that
theyareencouraging.
Undoubtedly, there aresome difficulties buttheiremergence isalmost unavoidable insuch
anambitious enterprise. Incertain areas, liketradeandenvironment, SPSandTBTweexpected greater
progress. Theextensive notification obligations putaheavy burden onallofus,thuscertain
simplification seems tobenecessary. Weregret thatnegotiations onfinancial andonbasic
telecommunication services could notbecompleted within theiroriginal time-frame onanMFN basis.
Wehopethatthese negotiations willreach asuccessful conclusion in1997.
Hungaryconsidersitimportantthatthepreparationforthenegotiationsandreviews,asenvisaged
bythebuilt-in agenda oftheMarrakesh Agreements, shallbegin according totheagreed timing and
conditions inorder toensure theirsuccessful completion. Given theexport structure ofHungary we
arelooking forward withspecial interest tothepreparation forthesecond stage oftheagricultural
reform.
MyGovernment isfullycommitted totheadherence ofthecorelabour standards. Weare
ofthefirmconviction thatthisisanextremely important political andhuman rights issue. Hungary
isthusprepared toprovide allsupport totheInternational Labour Organization toeffectively tackle
thisproblem area.
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Themarginalization oftheleastdeveloped countries isaserious concern forHungary, aswell.
Formany years wehavebeengranting duty-free treatment toallimports from these countries. We
hopethatourexample willbefollowed bymany others inlinewiththerespective recommendation.
Astothephenomenon ofregionalization weareconvinced thatregional andmultilateral trade
liberalization arecomplementary andmutually supportive processes. Bearing thisinmindweendeavour
tobecome verysoonafullmember oftheEUandrejoin theEuropean family ofnations.
Wewelcome thatsome ofourimportant trading partners arealsoonthewaytoaccede tothe
WTO. MyGovernment hopes thatinasmuch asthese countries areready tomeettherequirements
oftheWTO membership theiraccession willbearapid andsmooth process.
Theconsolidation ofthemajor achievements oftheUruguay Round should bethemain task
oftheWTO inthecoming years. However, inorder toremain relevant, theWTO should respond
tothenewchallenges oftheglobalizing world economy.
Inourviewthemostimportant newissueisinvestment. InHungary 'seconomic transformation
FDIhasplayed acrucial role. Therefore, wesupport thestartofanalytical work, asafirststeptoward
multilateral rule-making intheWTO.
Wearealsointerested inabalanced examination oftheinterrelationship between trade and
competition inourOrganization. Hungary isequally ready toexamine howWTO could contribute
tovarious international initiatives ontrade facilitation.
HungaryhasmademajorprogressinitseconomictransitionsinceMarrakesh.Havingestablished
thelegalandinstitutional framework ofamarket economy wefocused ourefforts onthestabilization
oftheexternal andbudgetary balances. Ourconsiderably improved performance isconfirmed bythe
spectacularly growing interest offoreign investors towards Hungary. Theprivatization process has
alsobeenaccelerated. Asaresult, theshare oftheprivate sector intheGDP willreach 80percent
nextyear. Wehope thatthecomprehensive reform ofthesocial security system willprovide a
considerable amount ofnewresources forinvestments andforamore dynamic growth.
Courage fromtheGovernment andserious sacrifices fromthesociety arebothrequired togo
ahead withsuchanambitious agenda. Tosecure thenecessary public support forcontinuous economic
adjustment, asupportive, stable andpredictable external environment isalsovital. Awell-functioning,
rule-based WTO system constitutes afundamental element ofthisenvironment. Withallthisinmind
Iwould liketoassure you,Mr.Chairman, thattheHungarian delegation willdoitsutmost tocontribute
tothesuccess ofourcommon endeavour.