RESTRICTED  
  
G/IT/M/57  
 
23 August 2013  
(13-4507)  Page: 1/11  
Committee of Participants on the Expansion of Trade in 
Information Technology Products    
 
  MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF 22 MARCH 2013 
CHAIRMAN: MR AARON FOWLER (CANADA) 
 
INTRODUCTI ON ............................................................................................................... 1  
1   REVIEW OF THE STATUS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MINISTERIAL 
DECLARATION ON TRADE IN INFO RMATION TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS 
(G/IT/1/REV.48) ............................................................................................................. 1  
2   REVIEW OF PR ODUCT COVERAGE ................................................................................ 2  
3   NON-TARIFF MEASURES WORK PROGRAMME (G/IT/19, 
G/IT/SPEC/Q4/19/RE V.2 AND G/IT/SPEC/ Q2/11/REV.1) ............................................. 6  
4   EMC/EMI PILOT PROJECT - DRAFT LIST OF THE TYPES OF CONFORMITY 
ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES FOR EMC/EMI USED BY ITA PARTICIPANTS 
(G/IT/W/17/REV.9) ........................................................................................................ 7  
5   DIVERGENCES IN CLASSIFYING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS 
(G/IT/14/REV.1/ADD.1, G/IT/W/6/REV .3, G/IT/W/33 AND G/IT/W/34) .................... 8  
6   NEW PARTICIPANTS ................................................................................................. 10  
6.1   Participation of Tajikistan ........................................................................................... 10 
6.2   Progress report concer ning the Russian  Federa tion ........................................................ 10 
7   OTHER BU SINESS ...................................................................................................... 11  
7.1   Date of th e next meeting ........................................................................................... 11 
 
INTRODUCTION 
The Committee adopted the proposed agenda for the meeting which was circulated in WTO/AIR/4090 
dated 12 March 2013. An annotated agenda for the meeting was circulated in document JOB/IT/9 
dated 15 March 2013. The Chairman stated that he wo uld take up the issue of the "date of the next 
meeting" under Other Business.   1  REVIEW OF THE STATUS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MINISTERIAL DECLARATION 
ON TRADE IN INFORMATION TECHNO LOGY PRODUCTS (G/IT/1/REV.48) 
1.1.  The Chairman stated that an overview of th e implementation of the Ministerial Declaration on 
Trade in Information Technology Products was contained in document G/IT/1/Rev.48. This 
document updated the Participants on the issues pertaining to the WTO procedures for 
implementation. As indicated in the document, he wanted to flag two long pending issues: the completion by El Salvador of its domestic legal procedural requirements and the submission by 
Morocco of its ITA schedule of commitments.   
1.2.  The representative of El Salvador stated that her delegation had no further updated 
information on this matter. She noted the question by the Chairman and would convey it to her 
capital.  G/IT/M/57 
 
- 2 - 
 
  1.3.  The representative of Morocco informed the Committee that he had contacted his capital on 
this matter and was awaiting instructions. He would communicate the information to the 
Committee as soon as his delegation had an  official response from the capital. 
1.4.  The Committee took note of the statements made.  
2  REVIEW OF PRODUCT COVERAGE 2.1.  The Chairman stated that at the request of  some delegations since the Committee meeting of 
15 May 2012, the "review of product coverage" had become a regular agenda item for the 
Committee. It had provided an opportunity for the Committee to receive reports and updates from 
those Participants who were engaged in bilateral and plurilateral consultations related to the review of product coverage pursuant to Paragraph 3 of the Annex to the ITA. He invited delegations who wished to do so, to report or make statements on this matter.   
2.2.  The representative of the United States repo rted briefly on the ITA expansion meetings of the 
Technical Working Group (TWG) that his delegation had hosted during that week. He said that the 
group consisted of 20 ITA Participants engaged in on-going discussions on a consolidated list of 
additional products proposed for inclusion in the ITA product coverage. The group welcomed 
Mauritius as a new member. Since the circulation of the last revision of the consolidated list in mid-December, the group had made significant progress in refining and streamlining the list of 
products. Over the course of the meetings in January, February and that week, more than 120 
proposed products had been removed from the consolidated list, with 22 products being removed that week. A list of the items removed during that  week, was included in the Room Document on 
the conclusions of the ITA expansion TWG meetin gs. Among the items that were removed, some 
were considered to be less relevant to the IT sector. In addition, several Participants had made 
significant contributions by removing products off the table that had been identified as sensitivities by some Participants. A revised consolidated list reflecting the significant progress was to be 
issued as JOB/IT/7/Rev.3. He hoped that the revised list would help facilitate each ITA 
Participant's domestic consultations on ITA expansion. Over the course of the past few months, there had been a shift in the dynamic of the wo rking group process. Since January, Participants 
had shifted to a negotiating mode aimed at building consensus and working towards a balance of 
interest. During the meetings that had taken place that week, the TWG participants had agreed to accelerate their work with a view of completing the negotiations on a consolidated list of products before the WTO summer break. To achieve this objective, the ITA expansion TWG  had to intensify 
its efforts and agreed to convene negotiating se ssions during the weeks of 22 April, 27 May, 24 
June and 15 July 2013. He stressed that the ITA expansion list was still work in progress and was subject to further revision as negotiations proceeded. He thanked delegations that had taken time 
that week to meet with the US industry-represe ntatives that were in Geneva. Their message was 
that "Global industry has been looking for a commercially significant expansion of the ITA to reflect the tremendous technological development in the IT sector since 1996". His delegation was 
optimistic that this outcome was achievable and looked forward to working with all ITA Participants 
to conclude a successful expansion agreement. 
2.3.  The representative of the European Union we lcomed the progress that had been made during 
that week in which his delegation together with other delegations had been actively involved and 
contributed to. There was an increasing movement towards convergence around a common list. 
The group needed to intensify the process of negotiations and his delegation welcomed the accelerated plan of meetings. He stressed that, firs tly, his delegation wanted to see definitions of 
products as broad as possible so that Members could cast the net wide to include all IT products 
that they could foresee. Thus, the new list had to  be up to date for a period of time; to avoid 
future definition problems in as much as possibl e; and easily implemented by customs. Secondly, 
he emphasized that his delegation   was in favour of maintaining a high level of ambition in this 
process. They wanted to have an expansion that would have a real impact on trade in IT products in a way that would promote technological development and innovation. This implied that all Participants had to make an effort to include products that had not been their initial choice. This 
implied further cleaning of the list towards what could be a common list. He felt that ambition 
needed to have a hose of realism and if  there were one or two products that were critically sensitive for one or some Members, they would be taken into account for the benefit of the overall 
process. He mentioned that Montenegro had indi cated that they would be joining the review 
process.  G/IT/M/57 
 
- 3 - 
 
  2.4.  The representative of Japan thanked the US for the very comprehensive and accurate report 
on the  work b y the  g roup . He  inform e d   that during the week, a number of global IT industry 
delegations, including the Japanese IT industry delegation had visited Geneva and had met with 
delegations discussing the ITA expansion for prod ucts coverage and membership. He thanked the 
more than 20 delegations that had met with the Japanese IT industry delegation. Their meetings 
had been constructive despite the different views on certain issues. He thanked in particular to the delegations of the United States, China, Korea, Chinese Taipei, ASEAN members, other members 
of the APEC; and India, Norway, Switzerland, Po land, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica. He also 
thanked non-ITA participants, such as Brazil, Chile and Mexico for their constructive dialogue with the Japanese IT industry representatives desp ite their different views on some issues.  
2.5.  He acknowledged that it was normal to have   different views. What was important was not a 
kind of neglect or condemnation but listening to the others and having dialogue. Japan felt that 
such dialogue was a sign of growing interest of both global business and the delegations in Geneva, in what was going on with the ITA expansion. Japan believed that the momentum had to 
be kept in Geneva so that the outside world would not lose interest in what was happening. He 
said that, as had been reported by the US delega tion earlier, that week's negotiation meetings 
among the TWG members had been very productive  and positive. The group now consisted of 47 
ITA Participants.  Japan thanked the host, the US delegation for its neutral, non-coercive but 
productive organization of the meetings. Japan recognized that Members also positively agreed to accelerate the negotiations in order to complete them by the summer break. The WTO had to show credible outcome in the area of tariffs after 16 years' operation of the ITA. The co-operation 
among the TWG members had shown that the WTO could produce commercially significant 
outcome in a timely manner in order to meet with the technological developments and the needs of the global business. In this regard, Japan look ed forward to working continuously together with 
other TWG members.  
2.6.  The representative of Switzerland echoed the previous speakers and agreed that significant 
progress had been made on various fronts. Swit zerland was grateful to the US delegation for 
having hosted and organized the process during  that week. Progress had been made on two 
fronts. First, the TWG members had substantially improved the compiled list.  Switzerland thanked 
all the TWG members for their efforts and constructive support in streamlining the list. Second, the number of members to the TWG had increased over the past months. Switzerland welcomed 
Mauritius to the TWG as the 21
st member and encouraged other ITA Participants to join the group. 
Switzerland was of the view that the list of additi onal products to be covered by the extended ITA 
had to be credible for the industries, and manageab le by customs. Although some work was still to 
be done, Switzerland believed that the current list could meet the expectations of the Swiss 
industries. After 15 years of inactivity, the ITA Participants could not afford to miss the opportunity to update the Agreement. Given the fast grow ing characteristics of the IT industry, ITA 
Participants had to make sure that they did not have to wait another 15 years before the next 
expansion of the ITA. Switzerland therefore strongly believed that the negotiations were on a good path towards the finalization of an agreed list by the summer break and it remained committed to working constructively with a view to helping achieve this objective. 
2.7.  The representative of Croatia joined the previous speakers in thanking the US for the 
comprehensive progress report on the on-going negotiations. Croatia participated in the 
negotiations as a strong supporter to the new tariff reduction initiative with a view to expanding 
product coverage of the ITA. Croatia noted that si nce 1996 not a single product had been added to 
the list. Living in the time of science and technology, two key factors of economic growth and quality of life were changing so fast. Croatia believed that the IT products expansion would 
produce substantial benefits for all as the IT products were a driver of innovation and represented 
the basic input across all sectors in any economy. Croatia was deeply committed to completing these negotiations and to achieving the successful outcome by summer. 
2.8.  The representative of Singapore, speaking on behalf of ASEAN TWG members, confirmed that 
significant progress had been made in the IT products expansion negotiations that week, in 
particular in streamlining the consolidated list as well as building consensus and proposals. They welcomed this development and especially, recognised the significant efforts by Korea and the 
flexibility it had shown. They thanked the US for the excellent arrangements. The presence and 
engagement of the industry added much exciteme nt to the TWG week. They found the exchange 
very useful. ASEAN TWG members were committed in keeping the positive momentum going and 
working constructively with all ITA members in a transparent manner towards a credible list that G/IT/M/57 
 
- 4 - 
 
  would keep the possibility for items to be remo ved or added to it if significant support was 
garnered. The list should also reflect current technological developments and commercial realities. The successful outcome of the ITA product expansion negotiations would reaffirm the relevance of the WTO in the multilateral trading system. They urged ITA Participants yet to join the discussions, 
to accelerate and complete their domestic consultations as soon as possible so that all ITA 
Participants could work together to shift a list, reflecting all their interests and creating a win-win situation for global trade. ASEAN TWG members wo uld remain constructively engaged towards the 
conclusion of the negotiations. 
2.9.  The representative of Canada joined previous speakers in thanking the US for hosting that 
week's meetings and also for providing a comprehensive progress report. Canada wished to 
reiterate its support for the negotiations on ITA expansion and was pleased with the progress that 
had been made to date. Canada stood ready to engage in more intensive negotiations that could 
deliver results by MC-9 in Bali. Modernizing the ITA to reflect the tremendous changes in the ICT sector that took place in the past 15 years would not only be a good outcome for governments and 
the business community but, also for the WTO as an institution.  He urged ITA Participants to 
always keep in mind what would be credible for their business communities and what would be 
administrable for their customs officials. A meaningful result in the expansion should not just be 
for product coverage but also the membership. Canada strongly encouraged ITA Participants that 
had not yet joined the negotiations to do so as soon as they could so that they could have their interests reflected in the list which was expe cted to be finalized by the summer break. 
2.10.  The representative of El Salvador thanked the delegation of the US for the update on the 
technical work that had been carried out since the last formal meeting of the Committee. She said 
that her delegation had followed this very clos ely and participated in the various transparency 
sessions. As mentioned on various occasions, her authorities had carried out internal consultations 
on this issue and as a result of these consultations, some concerns had been raised with regard to 
the revenue impact that this type of initiative would have in countries such as El Salvador particularly at the time when El Salvador was experiencing difficult economic conditions. While 
they did recognize the efforts made by the proponents especially in recent months with a view to 
cleaning up the status of products proposed, El Salvador still considered that additional efforts could be made to continue to reduce the size of the list. El Salvador had some concerns over the IT relevance of some products which, in her view, had to be discussed by all ITA Participants. El 
Salvador would review in detail the document circulated in the room. Furthermore, they 
considered that any initiative of this kind had to note the different situations of the various ITA Participants. Some Participants were still in the pr ocess of trying to reap to benefit from the ITA 
bearing in mind that El Salvador was neither a significant exporter of these products nor benefitted 
from investments in this sector. They would continue in the framework of discussions on this issue in the context of the transparency meetings, bila teral meetings and possibly in the framework of 
the Committee. They hoped to use these meetings to  share their concerns that had been raised on 
various occasions. She pointed out that after the detailed technical analysis, the issue of ITA product expansion would continue to be discussed and assessed at the highest level by her authorities in capital. El Salvador hoped to join in the process in the upcoming months. 
2.11.  The representative of Nicaragua echoed wh at had been expressed by the delegation of El 
Salvador. They thanked the US delegation for its report on the work that had been done thus far 
w i t h  a  v i e w  t o  t r y i n g  t o  c l e a n  u p  t h e  l i s t .  H e  s a i d  t h a t  a s  h a d  b e e n  e x p r e s s e d  o n  p r e v i o u s  
occasions, Nicaragua was not yet ready to favour support to the list which had been analysed in 
capital at the very highest level and as soon as he received information, he would make it available to the coordinators of the TWG.  
2.12.  The representative of Korea agreed with th e US delegation that there had been  a lot of 
progress in technical discussions during that week resulting in an attractive consolidated list. He 
stressed what had been mentioned by the ASEAN, that Korea had withdrawn some of its products from the list despite a substantial amount of commercial export interest for those products. He 
said that it was a difficult decision taken by his authorities as a result of the highest level of 
domestic consultations with relevant industries and government agencies. Korea's contributions were aimed at helping the negotiations on ITA product expansion move forward and take into 
account the concerns of others. Korea was also looking forward that others would show similar 
flexibility to reflect vital interest and concerns in a balanced manner in the future discussions. Korea was pleased to host the next round of th e TWG meetings during the week of 22 April 2013. 
Korea took the opportunity to urge those ITA Participants that had not joined the TWG discussions G/IT/M/57 
 
- 5 - 
 
  to do so.  Arrangements were to be made for a transparent session on 26 April 2013 in order to 
share the outcome of the April TWG discussions. Korea would extend an invitation and agenda to all ITA Participants in due course. Korea hoped to further its already close cooperation with others 
in the coming months with a view to making the ITA expansion a real achievement. 
2.13.  The representative of Chinese Taipei th anked the US delegation for hosting the  TWG 
meetings and for its progress report. She noted th at a lot of work had been achieved since the 
start of the process. Chinese Taipei was very pl eased with the progress made in that week, and 
thanked Members for showing their flexibility, which in her view, facilitated the process. Over the 
past 16 years, information technology had developed and progressed enormously. Current ITA product coverage was not able to reflect the current information technological developments anymore. There was urgency for all ITA Participants  to engage in the review of the product list. 
Chinese Taipei encouraged other Participants who were not directly involved in the process to 
accelerate their domestic consultations and join the negotiations as soon as possible. It was important for all ITA Participants to grasp this opportunity and momentum to move forward with 
the ITA expansion. Her delegation echoed the US, the EU, Japan, Korea and others with a view to 
achieving deliverable results at MC-9. The TWG had to commit to conclude the negotiations by the summer break. Chinese Taipei stood ready to participate and fully engage in the negotiations. For 
the core elements of product coverage, her delegation was hoping that the negotiation outcome 
would be ambitious and commercially meaningful. They believed that it was only by the full engagement of Members demonstrating their flexibility and conducting negotiations in a pragmatic manner that their quest for an expanded ITA would succeed.  She looked forward to working 
together with other Members towards a successful ITA expansion. 
2.14.  The representative of Hong Kong, China than ked the US for hosted a very fruitful round of 
meetings that week and the very comprehensive report. She also thanked all those who had come 
from the capital. Hong Kong, China had been participating actively in the TWG discussions with a 
view to refining the consolidated list. She was pleased with the progress made towards shortening the draft consolidated list at recent meetings. She hoped that the TWG would continue with the 
positive progress with a view to reconsolidating the list and building consensus.  Hong Kong, China 
believed that an ambitious and credible product list would be most conducive to moving the 
negotiations forward.  They would continue to be pragmatic and flexible to facilitate the process. They extended their  thanks to Members who had been showing a lot of flexibility and hoped that 
other Members would continue to exercise flexibility when necessary to take forward the 
negotiations. They encouraged more Members to join and participate in the negotiations and looked forward to achieving deliverables on the ITA product expansion. 
2.15.  The representative of New Zealand shared the assessment of many others that had spoken 
and noted the positive progress that had been made in the recent months in the TWG discussions. 
She agreed that these discussions were taking plac e in a constructive atmosphere and thanked the 
US for hosting that week's meetings and also thanked Korea for volunteering to host the next 
round of discussions. New Zealand, while  not a large producer of ITA products, saw this expansion work as crucial to ensuring that the ITA remained a relevant factor for the businesses particularly those operating as part of global value chains as this was the case for many SMEs. New Zealand 
had expressed support for the consensus that was forming on a large number of lines and was 
continuing its work at home with regard to ot her product proposals. New Zealand looked forward 
to working with other Members as progress in the negotiations would further in the week of 26 
April 2013. 
2.16.  The representative of Iceland thanked th e US and others for their thorough and useful 
report on the TWG discussions. Iceland, was not participating in these negotiations, but was 
following the matter seriously. Iceland was encouraged to hear that the process remained open to 
those ITA participants that had not been pa rticipating in the negotiations so far. 
2.17.  The representative of Norway agreed with those who had noted positive developments in 
the TWG meetings that week. Norway felt the gr oup had made considerable progress in the last 
three rounds and was pleased with the direction this was going. While a lot of necessary and hard 
work had been done, and good progress had been ma de so far, there was still more to be done. 
His delegation was confident that an ambitious and balanced agreement could be reached within 
the time schedule that the group had set. More ITA Participants were encouraged to join the 
discussions and the group remained open to any questions that they might have. Norway was 
pleased to note that there were more countries joining the TWG at each round of meetings with G/IT/M/57 
 
- 6 - 
 
  Mauritius being the latest Member to join and was soon to be followed by Montenegro. Norway was 
also encouraged by Iceland's  statement and hoped that even more ITA Participants would join the 
group for the upcoming meetings. 
2.18.  The representative of Australia welcomed and supported the on-going discussions on 
expanding the product coverage of the ITA. It was well overdue and a timely conclusion would 
positively signal that Members were continuing their efforts to liberalize global trade and resisting protectionism. Australia was pleased with the prog ress made to date and looked forward to further 
and more rapid progress to ensure that the nego tiations were concluded by the summer break. 
Australia appreciated the current efforts that were  being made by participants to streamline the proposed list for expansion. While good progress had been made in streamlining, Members needed to step up their efforts to increase the level of consensus on the product list.  All Members needed 
to make a contribution to deliver a credible outcome which was reflective of the changes to the 
sector and the global economy. Australia encouraged  all ITA participants to engage in the process 
of negotiating the product list and to ensure that  they genuinely achieved the full benefits of 
further trade liberalization in this sector. 
2.19.  The Chairman stated that he had attended some of the discussions that had taken place in 
the TWG since September 2012 and commended participants for the collaborative and collegial 
manner in which they were carrying out their work. The Committee would be interested in 
receiving updates on the group's discussions. He suggested that the Committee take note of all the statements made and agree to revert to this matter at its next meeting. 
2.20.  It was so agreed. 
3  NON-TARIFF MEASURES WORK PROGRAMME (G/IT/19, G/IT/SPEC/Q4/19/REV.2 
AND G/IT/SPEC/Q2/11/REV.1) 
3.1.  The Chairman recalled that in 2000, the Committee had approved a Work Programme on 
Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs) with the objective of id entifying impediments to trade in ITA products.  
He invited Participants to report and update the Committee on their work on NTMs, including any efforts that had been undertaken in the context of bilateral and plurilateral consultations. 
3.2.  The representative of Japan stated that since Norway's last report in November 2012, his 
delegation had hosted a meeting as part of a series of informal meetings on NTBs with interested 
Members. Those Members voluntarily discussed the conceptual ideas on how to move forward discussions on NTBs with a focus on transparency. The discussions were still at an early and 
conceptual stage. However, some Members brough t various new concrete ideas on transparency. 
Some Members stressed the importance of swiftl y completing the existing homework under the 
current work programme. Many Members recognised the necessity to develop further consultations 
with industries in order to grasp their needs on NTMs in a more appropriate manner. Interested 
Members, represented by their Geneva-based dele gates, would continuously exchange views on 
NTBs. The  discussion on NTBs in the context of the ITA was open to any interested Member.. They 
would keep the Committee updated on their discussions. 
3.3.  The representative of the European Union stated that as indicated by Japan, a number of 
delegations had been consulting over the past few months in different formats trying to work and 
find common ground in this area. His delegation attached importance to the work on NTBs and this 
area could have a significant impact on trade as it could complement the tariff elimination process. 
There were different levels of ambition among participants in the consultations.  There were also different views on what could be achieved and what the objectives of the work on NTBs should be. 
His delegation would intensify its efforts to find approaches that could gather broad support among 
the membership. He indicated that the EU would be ready to engage on the basis of proposals and ideas presented by other Participants and would welcome any such proposals, ideas and initiatives. 
In his view, all these could be conducive to the process. The EU would remain fully engaged in 
trying to find a wide support for ideas that co uld provide value added. He emphasized that the 
EU's objective in this area was not a-half-way process, but was to go on indefinitely for some time. The EU wanted something that would have an impact, not necessarily in the form of any disciplines 
but include elements on transparency and good re gulatory practice. The EU hoped to have some 
elements which could gather sufficient support around.  G/IT/M/57 
 
- 7 - 
 
  3.4.  The representative of the United States th anked Japan for chairing the January NTBs meeting 
and its summary of that meeting. The US agreed th at building on the on-going activities under the 
NTM work program some meaningful work could be  done on NTBs. To that end, they had been 
participating in various meetings with other Members to explore various ideas which were 
pragmatic and could be supported by consensus of Members. To that goal, they planned to host a 
small group meeting in April to discuss practical ideas related to addressing NTBs. They welcomed interested Members to participate in that meeting. 
3.5.  The representative of Switzerland stated that once tariffs had been reduced to zero, the only 
remaining barriers to trade would be NTBs. Therefore, progress on the NTBs would be the key for 
the industries, and Switzerland attached great importance to the reduction of NTBs and remained committed to working constructively with all the other ITA participants in order to achieve 
meaningful results on NTBs. 
3.6.  The representative of the Philippines stated that, like Switzerland, they also attached great 
importance to NTBs. They agreed with Switzerland that once tariffs had gone down, NTBs would be 
their next hurdle. They thanked Japan for hosting the last meeting and noted that some progress 
on the ideas of transparency had been made. They welcomed the information that the US would host the next meeting on NTBs and indicated that they Philippines wanted to be invited to that 
meeting.  
3.7.  The representative of Korea stated th at his delegation was open-minded to the NTB 
discussions and shared the importance of NTB issues to realize the possible gains for trade in ITA 
products. He, however, noted that Members held widely differing views to the NTB issues. Given 
the situation, he re-emphasised that Members ne eded to continue the Work Programme on NTBs 
in a more concrete manner. Korea was willing to participate in the discussions in various formats including the meeting proposed by the US with a view to finding the way forward on the ITA 
related NTB issues. 
3.8.  The representative of Chinese Taipei than ked Japan for hosting the last NTB meeting. They 
also thanked the US for hosting the next NTB meeting. They had participated in those meetings in 
the past and wanted to continue the discussions under the work programme on NTBs with other 
Members. 
3.9.  The Chairman thanked those who had report ed and intervened. He encouraged Participants 
to continue their bilateral and plurilateral consultations, and inform to the Committee on any 
developments. He suggested that the Committee take  note of the statements made and agree to 
revert to this matter as appropriate at the next meeting.  
3.10.  It was so agreed.  
4  EMC/EMI PILOT PROJECT - DRAFT LIST OF  THE TYPES OF CONFORMITY ASSESSMENT 
PROCEDURES FOR EMC/EMI USED BY ITA PARTICIPANTS (G/IT/W/17/REV.9) 
4.1.  The Chairman recalled that one of the outcomes of the NTM Work Programme was the 
completion of a pilot project which led to the adoption of the "Guidelines for Electromagnetic 
Compatibility (EMC) and Electromagnetic Interfer ence (EMI) Conformity Assessment Procedures" 
on an ad referendum basis.  Upon adoption of these "Guidelines", the Secretariat, based on the 
survey responses submitted by and notifications re ceived from Participants, prepared a note on 
the "Draft List of Types of Conformity A ssessment Procedures for EMC/EMI used by ITA 
Participants" (G/IT/W/17). During subsequent proceedings of the Committee, Participants indicated that they had found the information contained therein very useful and wished to have it 
completed. To date, among the 49 ITA Participants , 28 had provided such information. However, 
there still were 21 Participants who had neither submitted a survey response nor a notification regarding the type of assessment procedures used by  their authorities for EMC/EMI.  Since the last 
Committee meeting in November 2012, information was provided by Croatia and Switzerland 
regarding changes to the types of conformity assessment procedures applied; the Philippines 
confirmed its procedures remained unchanged; and Colombia had notified its conformity assessment procedures for EMC/EMI. All these changes and updates were reflected in document 
G/IT/W/17/Rev.9.  G/IT/M/57 
 
- 8 - 
 
  4.2.  The representative of the Philippines th anked the Secretariat for compiling the latest 
document. She referred to the column on relevant information, and sought clarification from the 
Secretariat as to the meaning of "information not available".   
4.3.  The Secretariat clarified that the statem ent "information not available" meant that no 
information had been received from the Particip ant concerned. The Secretariat would update the 
list accordingly as and when it received the information, . 
4.4.  The Chairman thanked the delegate of the Philippines for the query and the Secretariat for 
the clarification. He stated that since the info rmation had greatly increased transparency on the 
types of conformity assessment procedures for EMC/EMI used by these ITA participants, and 
facilitated international trade in this important sector, those delegations that had not yet done so were encouraged to provide this information to the Secretariat as soon as possible so as to enable 
the Committee to complete this work.  He requested those delegations that had any queries to 
contact the Secretariat for detailed information, clarification or assistance. He also asked that the Secretariat continue to contact such delegations in order to provide the required technical 
assistance .  Participants were also asked to reflect upon the steps, if any, they would be prepared 
to consider with a view to maximizing the value of the information on EMC/EMI conformity assessment procedures that had been provided as well as that which was to be provided by the 
remaining Participants. He suggested that the Committee take note of all the statements made 
and revert to this matter at its next meeting.   
4.5.  It was so agreed. 
5  DIVERGENCES IN CLASSIFYING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS 
(G/IT/14/REV.1/ADD.1, G/IT/W/6/REV.3, G/IT/W/33 AND G/IT/W/34)  
5.1.  The Chairman turned to the item concerning divergences in classifying ITA products, and 
recalled that at a previous Committee meeting, Participants were invited to consider a draft 
decision proposed by the Chair regarding the endo rsement of List I-A items -  "Decision for the 
Classification of Certain Attachment B Products" which was first circulated as a room document. Since then, the draft decision proposed by the Ch air had been circulated in document G/IT/W/34. 
He explained that once the proposed decision had been adopted, each participant would reflect, as 
appropriate, the agreed classifications in its WTO Schedule of concessions following the procedures 
set forth in the 1980 Decision on Procedures for Modification and Rectification of Schedules of Tariff Concessions (BISD 27S/25). Participants would be required to submit the relevant 
documentation in connection with such modification no later than the date specified in the square 
brackets.  In order to help Participants, in particular those newly joined, understand the difficulties that they might encounter as a result of the proc ess of transposition, the Secretariat prepared a 
technical note "Classification Divergences:  Transposition of Items in List I - A into HS2002 and 
HS2007" contained in G/IT/W/33 of 16 May 2011.  
5.2.  He stated that at the last Committee meeting on 1 November 2012, one delegation advised 
that consultations in its capital were at an advanced stage but were not yet completed. One 
delegation did not see the relevance of pursuing the exercise using the HS96 parameters; proposed to use the model list as contained in document JOB(07)/96 as a basis; and suggested that Participants indicate which of the tariff lines had classification divergences from the model list 
as well as where they classified the products in question. That delegation also suggested that the 
Secretariat compile comments from each Participant so as to see where work on reducing classification divergence would be possible and could still be done. While other delegations 
supported the endorsement of List I-A, some also saw some merits of the said proposal. However, 
one delegation indicated that divergences were further complicated by changes in classification from HS96 to HS2002 and then from HS2002 to HS2007 which then had to be reflected in the 
each Participant's WTO schedule of concessions under the Uruguay Round, they would therefore be 
concerned should the Committee abandon this process. He asked if the Committee would be in a position to adopt the proposed Decision as contained in document G/IT//W/34.   
5.3.  The representative of El Salvador stated that  her delegation was continuing to consult on this 
topic. While some significant progress had been made in domestic and regional consultations, 
more time was needed.  G/IT/M/57 
 
- 9 - 
 
  5.4.  The representative of the Philippines pointe d out that this issue had been pending for a long 
time and noted that the draft decision was still looking at what the Participants had agreed on the 
HS96 classification. She thought that it would make sense to move to the HS2007 classification noting that in the on-going expansion process, the TWG had been looking at HS2007. The 
Philippines had, for a long time, been ready to adop t this decision but now needed to re-check with 
capital to see whether there had been significan t changes from HS96 to HS2007. She thought that 
it was very important that the Committee finished this work as Participants could in the future, be 
confronted with the problems they had in ITA I. 
5.5.  The representative of India stated that the document had analysed the 18 lines and the 
problem had actually arisen because most of the classification divergences had now been 
addressed in HS2007. He agreed with the statements  of El Salvador and the Philippines that the 
Committee needed to look at the HS2007 which would in itself, solve most of the classification 
divergences and that was the reason why his capital had not been able to agree to the specific HS 
lines that had been given on these 18 products in HS96. 
5.6.  The Chairman agreed with the comments abou t the importance of this work. He also agreed 
that the Committee's efforts in this regard had been complicated by the new generations of the 
HS. In his view, there was a great deal of value in trying to advance this work sooner rather than 
later so that the Committee could then look at th e remaining lists. The adoption of the decision 
would be just a tip of the iceberg as additional challenges would arise as a result of the various 
changes to the HS. He understood that certain delegations were continuing with their domestic consultations, but he feared that if the Committee kept taking note of comments made, 
Participants would continue having the same discussion without coming up with a decision. He 
therefore proposed to approv e the draft decision on an ad referendum  basis with 60 days for 
comments. He believed that this would provide the necessary time for concerned Participants to 
complete their domestic consultations.  
5.7.  The representative of the Philippines agreed  with the Chairman that the Committee had to do 
move forward. However, her concern was that the draft decision was based on the HS96. She 
asked whether, after the adoption of the draft decision, the Committee would continue working on 
the basis of HS96 or would move to the new generations of the HS. She found the Secretariat paper, G/IT/W/33, on how the HS96 had evolve d to HS2002 and then to HS2007 for related items 
and sought clarification from the Secretariat.  She said that the Philippines had no problem in 
adopting the decision as it stood but if it was to be  moved to the other HS, they would then need 
more time for consideration. 
5.8.  The Secretariat, in response to the  Philippi nes, explained that the draft Decision, if adopted, 
would require two separate actions.  The first would be to agree to the HS96 classification of the 
18 items and then, the second would be  based  on that classification, where each Participant 
would either or not, need to modify their schedule of concessions. It would therefore depend on 
whether or not one's schedule was affected by this decision. It could be the case of some 
Participants who actually would not need to make any modification because they had already classified those products in that manner. As indicated in the document produced by the Secretariat, there was no change from HS96 into HS2002. In fact, most of the schedules of ITA 
Participants were in HS2002 nomenclature so there was no difference between one and the other. 
However, the big change would come with respec t to HS2007 as the transposition work in the 
Committee on Market Access was on-going. There were different steps with the first one  having to 
know where to find these lines in HS96 and HS2002, and then, transposing them into HS2007. At 
present, some Participants had completely different lines than the ones that were mentioned in document G/IT/W/33. In transposing, one could end up with a different result than what had been 
presented in the document.  
5.9.  The representative of El Salvador stated that after the Philippines' question and the 
Secretariat's response; and  in order to contribute to this process, El Salvador could support the 
Chair's proposal to adopt the decision on an ad referendum  basis with a period of 60 days for 
comments. If there were no comments during the 60-day period from Participants, the proposed 
decision would be considered as adopted. If co mments were received during the 60-day period, 
the decision would not be adopted and this agenda item would be considered again at the next 
meeting of the Committee. She also understood that the proposed deadline in the brackets in 
paragraph 2 of the draft decision would need to be updated to 31 March 2014.  G/IT/M/57 
 
- 10 - 
 
  5.10.  The Chairman said that he agreed with El Salvador  to approve the draft decision at this 
meeting on an ad referendum  basis. In the event that no comments were received within the 60-
day period, the proposed decision would be deemed to have been adopted; and if specific comments  were submitted within those 60 days, the Committee would have to revert again to 
this item at its next meeting. He also agreed with El Salvador that the proposed date in brackets in 
paragraph 2 of the draft decision would need to be changed. He intended to propose 31 March 
2014 if there was a general agreement by the Committee to adopt the draft decision on an ad 
referendum  basis and if there were no implications for the Secretariat to provide assistance to the 
Participants.  
5.11.  The representative of India appreciated the compromised proposal by the Chairman. In 
terms of the 60-day ad referendum  period,  he wondered whether the Committee could agree on 
an ad referendum  basis for a 90-day period instead. In his view, when Participants technically 
analysed this particular list of HS96, HS2002 and HS2007 of the 18 lines, it was much easier for them to arrive at the HS2002 final HS lines because the HS2002 itself dealt with most of the ITA 
lines and had specific ex outs. If they could have a decision on an ad referendum  basis of a 90-day 
period, they could take into account all those three HS lines - HS96, HS2002 and HS2007 as he understood from the Secretariat that they needed to have a step-by-step process i.e., HS96 
schedule and then HS2002. He presumed that if most Participants went through that document it 
would be much easier for them to arrive at the HS2007. If they had a 90-day period to do all the 
three together, there would be no need for to come back to this later.  
5.12.  The representative of the Philippines agreed with the suggestion by India as it made more 
sense for Participants to tackle all the HS. 5.13.  The Chairman agreed with the request for a 90-day period. The Committee would have the 
results of this exercise well in advance of the ci rculation of the agenda for the next Committee. He 
suggested the Committee approve the draft decision on an ad referendum  basis with a 90-day 
period and that the Secretariat revise and circulate the decision in due course. 
5.14.  It was so agreed. 
6  NEW PARTICIPANTS 6.1  Participation of Tajikistan 6.1.  The Chairman welcomed the Republic of Ta jikistan which became the 76th Participant to the 
Committee on 1 March 2013.  
6.2  Progress report concerni ng the Russian Federation  
6.2.  The Chairman recalled that further to  the undertaking communicated by the Russian 
Federation during the Committee meeting of 24 Oc tober 2011 (reflected in the minutes of that 
meeting, G/IT/M/54), on 31 July 2012, the Russian Federation submitted its draft ITA schedule to 
the Secretariat. On 1 August 2012, the Russian ITA schedule, together with the Secretariat's verification sheet, were circulated to Participan ts for review and approval. On 16 August 2012, he 
had transmitted to the Russian Federation, the comments that had been received from 
delegations. He stated that at the Committee meeting of 1 November 2012, the delegation of the Russian Federation reported that their internal work continued in order to take into account comments received from delegations on their draft ITA schedule. He invited the delegation of the 
Russian Federation to update the Committee on this matter.   
6.3.  The representative of the Russian Federa tion informed the Committee that her authorities 
had finalised all internal procedures needed in order to become an ITA Participant and a formal 
decision had to be taken at the level of the Customs Union. Once that decision had been taken, 
they would present to the Committee their final ITA schedule, including the comments made by other Participants during the verification process. 
6.4.  The representative of the United States stated that his authorities viewed Russia's 
commitment to join the ITA as an important part of the Russian Federation's WTO accession G/IT/M/57 
 
- 11 - 
 
  package. They looked forward to reviewing Ru ssia's revised ITA schedule. He urged Russia to 
submit it properly for review by all Participants.  
6.5.  The representative of Japan said that Japanese industries continuously expressed their 
serious interest on the expansion of the ITA member ship, especially that of Russia. In this regard, 
he echoed the US statement.  
6.6.  The representative of the European Union thanked the Russian Federation for the information 
provided. They welcomed that the process was nearing the end. They looked forward to the 
revised schedule and expected that the process would be completed expeditiously.  
6.7.  The Chairman thanked Russia and the delega tions that had intervened and suggested that 
the Committee take note of all the statements made.  
6.8.  It was so agreed. 
7  OTHER BUSINESS 
7.1  Date of the next meeting   7.1.  The Chairman proposed that the Committee hold its next meeting in the second half of 2013, 
with the exact date to be decided in consultation with delegations.  
7.2.  It was so agreed.   
 
 
__________