RESTRICTED  
  
WT/COMTD/RTA/M/16  
 
8 April 2022  
(22-2877) Page: 1/4 
Committee on Trade and Development  
Sixteenth Dedicated Session on Regional Trade 
Agreements    
 
  
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 25 MARCH  2022 
Chairman: H.E. Dr Muhammad Mujtaba Piracha (Pakistan)  
A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA  ................................ ................................ ....................  1 
B. NOTIFICATIONS RECEIVED  ................................ ................................ .....................  2 
(I) Notifications of changes to existing regional trade agreements  ................................ ........  2 
(a) Protocol to amend the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic 
Co-operation and certain Agreements thereunder between the Association of Southeast 
Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China (Goods) (WT/COMTD/N/20/Add.2)  ................................ ....... 2 
C. LATIN AMERICAN INTEGRATION ASSOCIATION  ................................ .....................  2 
(I) Additional protocols concluded by member countries of the Latin American 
Integration Association under the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo (WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9, 
WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9/Corr.1)  ................................ ................................ .............................  2 
(II)  439 notifications circulated in accordance with the document symbols specified in 
Annexes I  to VIII of WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9/Corr.1  ..............................  2 
(III)  Notifications to the WTO of instruments concluded under the 1980 Treat y of 
Montevideo in 2020 (WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10/Corr.1)  ........................  2 
(IV)  33 notifications circulated in accordance with th e document symbols specified in 
WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10/Corr.1  ................................ .......................  2 
D. STATUS OF THE WORK OF THE DEDICATED SESSION  ................................ ..............  3 
(I) Status of the preparation of factual presentations – Report by the Chairman 
(WT/COMTD/RTA/W/11)  ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 3 
E. CONSIDERATION OF REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS  ................................ .............  4 
(I) Free Trade Agreement between Morocco and the United Arab Emirates (Goods)  
(WT/COMTD/RTA1/N/1, WT/COMTD/RTA1/1)  ................................ ................................ .........  4 
F. OTHER BUSINESS  ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 4 
 
A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA  
1. The Chairman  said that the draft agenda for the 16th Dedicated Session on Regional Trade 
Agreements (RTAs) of the Committee on Trade and Development (CTD) had been circulated in 
Airgram WTO/AIR/COMTD/RTA/1 1/Rev.1 of 15 March 2022. He indicated that he wished to provide 
some information regarding the Free Tr ade Agreement between the Gulf Cooperation Council  (GCC)  
member States and Singapore, the goods aspects of which were to be considered at the present 
meeting  under item E  (II) of the draft agenda. The services aspects of the agreement were to be 
considered at the meeting of the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA) on 
28 March  2022. Questions on this agreement were submitted by the delegations of Brazil and 
Canada. However, the parties ha d reques ted that the consideration of the agreement be postponed 
to the next meetings of the CRTA and the CTD's Dedicated Session on RTAs, as they were in need 
of more time to respond to the questions received.  The Free Trade Agreement between WT/COMTD/RTA/M/16  
 
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  the GCC member State s and Singapore  would therefore not be considered at the present meeting . 
The only agreement that w ould be considered under agenda item E was the Free Trade Agreement 
between Morocco and the United Arab Emirates. The agenda for the present meeting would ne ed to 
be amended accordingly.  
 
2. The agenda was adopted  as amended.  
B. NOTIFICATIONS RECEIVED  
(I) Notifications of changes to existing regional  trade agreements  
(a) Protocol to amend the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic 
Co-operation and certain Agreements thereunder between the Association of 
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China  (Goods) (WT/COMTD/N/20/Add.2)  
3. The Chairman  said that  a notification of changes to an existing RTA ha d been received from 
the delegation of Thailand on behalf  of the ASEAN member States and China. The RTA in question 
was the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and 
China, which was originally notified under the Enabling Clause in 2004 in document 
WT/COMTD/N/20. Subsequently, i n 2005, the Agreement on Trade in Goods of the Framework 
Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and China was notified under 
the Enabling Clause in document WT/COMTD/N/20/Add.1.  The notification of changes which was 
reflected on the agenda of the present meeting concern ed the Protocol to amend the Framework 
Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and certain Agreements thereunder between 
ASEAN and China. The goods aspects of this notification were contained in document 
WT/COMTD/N/20/Add.2.  
 
4. The representative of  the United States  thanked the parties for the notification , and for 
participating in the transparency exercise.  
 
5. The Committee took note  of the notification , and of the interventions.  
C. LATIN AMERICAN INTEGRATION ASSOCIATION  
(I) Additional protocols concluded by member countries of the Latin American Integration 
Association under the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo  (WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9, 
WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9/Corr.1 ) 
(II)  439 notifications circulated in accordance with the document symbols spec ified in 
Annexes I to VIII of WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9/Corr.1  
(III) Notifications to the WTO of instruments concluded under the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo 
in 2020 (WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10/Corr.1)  
(IV) 33 notifications circulated in accordance with the document symbols specified in 
WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10/Corr.1  
6. The Chairman  said that the present agenda item was concern ed with  a number of documents 
submitted by Uruguay on behalf of the me mber countries of the Latin American Integration 
Association  (LAIA) . The agenda item , as it stood , was requested by the delegation of Uruguay. Under 
this agenda item , there was firstly a communication circulated in documents WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9 
and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9/Corr.1 . The title of this communication  concerned a dditional protocols 
concluded by the LAIA member countries under the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo ( TM80 ). Following 
from this communication, 439  notifications were circul ated in accordance with the document symbols 
specified in Annexes I to VIII of WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/9/Corr.1 . A second 
communication, circulated in documents WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10 and  WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10/Corr.1 , 
was concerned with n otifications to the WTO of instruments concluded under the TM80 in 2020. 
Following  from this communication, 33 notifications were circulated in accordance with the document 
symbols specified in WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10 and WT/COMTD/RTA/W/10/Corr.1 . He invite d the 
delegation of Uruguay, as well as any other  LAIA member countries , to introduce these documents.  WT/COMTD/RTA/M/16  
 
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  7. The representative of Uruguay  said that in her  national capacity , and given that Uruguay 
hosted the LAIA headquarters,  she wish ed to inform the Committee that  342 datasheets ha d been 
circulated concerning the additional protocols to the existing agreements to which LAIA members 
were party. The se datasheets , which  were in accordance with the format set out in document 
WT/COMTD/63, were signed within  the framework of the TM80, and fell under  paragraph 4(a) of the 
Enabling Clause. The datasheets ha d been sent as a follow -up to the datasheets duly submitted in 
2018 under  the TM80. She noted that the circulated notification sheets d id not include the additional 
protocols that were not in force or that ha d not fulfilled their purpose. Notifications of instruments 
concluded under the TM80 in 2020 had also been  circulated. The submission of these documents 
demonstrate d the LAIA member countries' compliance with their WTO obligations, in accordance 
with the guidelines set forth in the Transparency Mechanism for RTAs. 
8. The representative of the European Union  said that his delegation had noted that a number 
of agreements signed under the LAIA umbrella appeared on the  list of non -notified RTAs. If there 
were any agreements that had not been notified,  he asked whether the LAIA member countries 
intended to notify the a greements in question.  
9. The representative of the United States  thanked the LAIA member countries for their 
notifications and for participating in the transparency exercise.  
 
10. The representative of Uruguay  indicated that she would be speaking on a bilateral basis with 
the European Union to address the question raised.  
11. The Committee took note  of the documents submitted by Uruguay on behalf of the 
LAIA member countries, and of the interventions .  
D. STATUS OF THE WORK OF THE DEDICATED SESSION  
(I) Status of the preparation of factual presentations – Report by the Chairman 
(WT/COMTD/ RTA/W/ 11) 
12. The Chairman  said that his report on the status of the preparation of factual presentations 
of RTAs notified under the Enabling Clause was contained in document  WT/COMTD/RTA/W/11.  The 
report indicated that it was still not possible for the Secretariat to finalize a number of factual 
presentations. In some cases, the Secretariat was still awaiting the submission of the full set of data, 
while in others, all commen ts on the draft factual presentations had not been received. He urged all 
the parties to these agreements to provide the data and information as soon as possible. With regard 
to the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA ), he recalled that the pre paration of the 
factual presentation had been on hold  for many years . He explained that t he CTD follow ed the 
procedures of the CRTA for the preparation of factual presentations, and in the CRTA as well as in  
the CTD, factual presentations were not being prepared for RTAs where all the parties had not ratified 
the agreement in question. However, as the procedures in the CRTA ha d recently changed, and the 
Secretariat was now preparing factual presentations for these RTAs as well, a request ha d been se nt 
to the PICTA  parties for data to be submitted for the preparation of the factual presentation on the 
agreement.  
 
13. The representative of the United  States  thank ed the Secretariat for its diligence in advancing 
the preparation of factual presentations for several RTAs.  
 
14. The Committee took note  of the Chairman's report , and of the interventions . WT/COMTD/RTA/M/16  
 
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  E. CONSIDERATION OF REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS  
(I) Free Trade Agreement between Morocco and the United Arab Emirates (Goods) 
(WT/COMTD/RTA1/N/1, WT/COMTD/RTA1/1)1 
F. OTHER BUSINESS  
15. No matter was raised under "Other Business".  
16. The meeting was adjourned . 
__________  
 
1 The minutes relating to the consideration of this agreement are contained in document 
WT/COMTD/RTA 1/M/1.