RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/C/M/30 
7 May 2010 
 (10-2633) 
Trade Negotiations Committee 
22 and 26 March 2010  
 
 
 
MINUTES OF MEETING 
 
Held in the Centre William Rappard  
on 22 and 26 March 2010  
 
Chairman:  Mr. Pascal Lamy (Director-General) 
 
 Subjects discussed:
 
 
1. Statement by the Chairman – 22nd March 2010.....................................................................1  
2. Reports by the Chairpersons of th e Bodies Established by the TNC...................................1  
3. Statements by Participants..................................................................................................... ..2 
4. Statement made by the Chairman – 26th March 2010 ...........................................................9  
5. Statements by Participants..................................................................................................... ..9 
 
 
1. Statement by the Chairman – 22nd March 2010 
1. The Chairman  delivered his report as contained in document JOB/TNC/1.   
2. In outlining the programme of work for the we ek, he indicated his intention to provide 
Members with a full statement on 26 March.  He in vited the Chairpersons of the bodies established by 
the TNC to present their reports and noted that these re ports would be circulated after the meeting.   
2. Reports by the Chairpersons of the Bodies Established by the TNC 
3. Ambassador Walker (New-Zealand), Chairman of the Special Session of the Committee on 
Agriculture , delivered his report as contained in document TN/AG/25.   
4. Ambassador Wasescha (Switzerland), Chairman of the Negotiating Group on Market Access , 
delivered his report as contained in document TN/MA/22.   
5. Ambassador de Mateo y Venturin i (Mexico), Chairman of the Special Session of the Council 
for Trade in Services , delivered his report as contained in document TN/S/35.   
6. Ambassador Valles Galmes (Uruguay), Chai rman of the Negotiating Group on Rules , 
delivered his report as contained in document TN/RL/24.   
7. Ambassador Mwape (Zambia), Chairman of th e Special Session of the Council for TRIPS , 
delivered his report as contained in document TN/IP/20.   TN/C/M/30 
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  8. Ambassador Teehanke (Philippines), Chairman  of the Special Session of the Committee on 
Trade and Environment , delivered his report as contained in document TN/TE/19.   
9. Ambassador Sophastienphong (Thailand), Chairman of the Special Session of the Committee 
on Trade & Development , delivered his report as contained in document TN/CTD/25.   
10. Ambassador Sperisen-Yurt (Guatemala), Ch airman of the Negotiating Group on Trade 
Facilitation , delivered his report as contained in document TN/TF/7.   
11. Ambassador Saborio Soto (Costa Rica), Chairman of the Special Session of the Dispute 
Settlement Body , delivered his report as contained in document TN/DS/24.   
12. The Chairman  thanked the Chairs for their reports.  He said that he wished to provide 
delegations with a brief update on his consultations on the issues of GI extension and TRIPS/CBD.   
13. He reminded delegations that Ministers in Hong  Kong had requested the Director-General to 
intensify the existing consultative process on two TRIPS issues that were included as outstanding 
implementation issues in the Doha Declaration and in subsequent ministerial declarations:  (i) the extension of the protection of geographical indi cations provided for in Article 23 of the TRIPS 
Agreement to products other than wines and spirits  and;  (ii) the relationship between the TRIPS 
Agreement and the Convention on Biological Divers ity.  He had also been mandated to report 
regularly on his consultations to th e TNC and the General Council.   
14. He said that from March 2009 onwards, at the re quest of Members, he had undertaken these 
consultations personally, conve ning seven sessions between Marc h 2009 and March 2010.  He had 
reported on these consultations at successive meetings of the TNC and the General Council.  Further, 
in the interests of transparency  and inclusiveness, he had also convened two open-e nded sessions, in 
July 2009 and March 2010, to brief the full Memb ership on the consultations undertaken.  These 
reports, which gave the details of the consultations , including on the issues raised, had been placed on 
the WTO website soon after each of these open-ended sessions.   
15. He said that his overall impression was that while the consultations had not created 
convergence they had certainly shed clearer light on the divergences.  On both issues, more was now 
understood as to what divides Members, and there was a better practical sense of what it could mean 
to bridge the gaps, if and when the decision came to try to construct that bridge.  He said that his full 
reports touched on substantive points.  Clearly, mo re work was needed if any movement towards 
convergence was to be found.  It should also be noted that these consultations only dealt with the 
substance of the issues, and had expressly not deal t with the broader, systemic issues such as the 
question of how the Doha mandate was to be read or implemented, and in  particular whether, and if so 
how, these issues should be linked to the broader negotiating agenda.   
16. He said that over the coming days he would be consulting with Members with different 
sensitivities on both of these matters regarding the best way forward.   
17.  The Trade Negotiations Committee took note
 of the Chairman's statement as well as of the 
reports of the Negotiating Chairs. 
 
3. Statements by Participants 
18. All delegations that spoke thanked the Chair of the TNC and the Chairs of the various 
Negotiating bodies for their reports.  TN/C/M/30 
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  19. The representative of Gabon , speaking on behalf of the African Group , welcomed the 
stocktaking exercise.  The Doha Development Ag enda (DDA) and its development dimension in 
particular, were of essential importance to the African Group, and it would carefully examine the 
different reports, in the light of the concerns of its members.  He said that the African Group would 
therefore like the reports produced by the different Chairs to be made available in all three WTO 
languages.  The African Group hoped that this stocktaking exercise would be a success.   
20. The representative of Zambia , speaking on behalf of the LDCs , welcomed this added 
opportunity for Members to revisit the state-of-pla y of the Round, but even more important, to 
identify the gaps in the negotiations with a view to focusing and re-invigorating the negotiations in 
order to bring the conclusion of the Round to fruitio n.  The LDC Group took note of the reports and 
wished to state that they formed useful basis for continued engageme nt over the next few days and the 
period post-stocktaking.   
21. The Group was hopeful that Members would em erge from this process more focused and 
ready to engage in a most candid manner.  This should not be business as usual.  Members should be 
willing to show real flexibility.   
22. The LDC priorities were well known to the Memb ers.  LDC Ministers had reiterated them 
both in Dar-es-Salaam and also during their meeting pr ior to the 7h Ministerial.  The group expected 
that any work plan emanating from the stockt aking exercise would address those issues.   
23. While appreciating the objectives of the stocktaking exercise, it was important that this 
process was transparent and inclusive.  This called for clarity on the structure and content of the 
meetings planned during the week.  Indeed, this  was the only way in which Members could fully 
express themselves on what they not only perceived to be the gaps, but on possible solutions thereof.   
24. At the end of this week, Members expected clarity on issues of substance.  However, those 
issues were likely to be a mix of technical and politi cal issues.  While Senior Officials might  engage 
on technical issues post-stocktaking, political issues should remain unattended to.  In this regard, the 
LDC Group was of the opinion that this stocktaking exercise could be followed up by some 
engagement at the political level.  Finally, he st ressed that the LDC Group would continue to engage 
positively and constructively in order to ensure that  the conclusion of the Round was not delayed any 
further so that Members could begin to  reap the development benefits of the Round.   
25. The representative of Cuba  said that this week was intended to be one of stocktaking.  Some 
would participate more than others, but that woul d not be of major importance if what everyone said 
were   given the same amount of attention.  He said that the first problem was that Members had not 
yet found a way to evaluate what needed to be ev aluated.  Nothing in this Round was independent of 
the established system of rules, which had been th e subject of never-ending attempts to demonstrate 
its effectiveness and indispensability.  The immens e differences that existed between Members were 
due to the WTO having established the doctrine of ne gotiating and applying identical sets of rules for 
economies that were very different.  This had led to the perpetuation, from the inception of the GATT 
to this day, of an intricate system of differen tial treatment for the weaker economies, which did not 
enable the majority of them to ove rcome their structural deficiencies and to a lack of understanding on 
the part of the industrialized countries of the fact th at a better distribution of wealth would benefit all, 
including those that did not need to increase it.  Th ese issues would never be reconsidered as long as 
economic power, more concentrated than ever before , continued to dictate rules to governments.  The 
current crisis had been caused by this absurd practice of power.   
26. Regarding the last few years of the Round he sai d that the recognition that various things had 
failed and others did not produce the anticipated results was widespread, if not unanimous.  The 
ambition of the Round was a problem for a start.  It would appear that Members did not have the TN/C/M/30 
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  capacity to handle so many topics at once.  This was not a question of technical capacity - although 
this was not the same for all delegations - but abou t the capacity to set up an equation with so many 
variables and find a solution satisfactory to all concerne d.  This could be the first lesson for the future.  
Perhaps there was a way of finding a balance within these topics, without necessarily expanding the agenda to balance them among themselves.   
27. He recognized that some subjects were of great er concern to some Members than to others, 
and that this led to the adoption of certain negotia ting formats.  His delegation believed that Members 
should be more adept at realizing when these format s did not produce results.  It was no easy matter to 
propose, coordinate and conciliate, but Members must try new formats when those that had been used 
for a reasonable period of time were not working.   If these new formats were not found, there was 
always the possibility of going back to multilateralism , as Cuba had suggested many times.  In this 
regard, his delegation agreed that the Senior Offici als meetings had produced the results they were 
capable of producing.  This format should be reserve d for when there was something to be decided, or 
at least when there was something to discuss.   
28. He stressed that with regard to the current st ate-of-play, there were major differences on all 
issues, but also major deficiencies in  topics that needed to be dealt with.  The work already done had 
not reached the minimum necessary to conclude the m odalities this year and to fulfil the mandate of a 
development Round.  In the three main areas that had been prioritized since 2008, the advances were 
very limited.  In agriculture, the templates exer cise had taken up too much time, when it was only a 
secondary aspect complementing essential ma tters that remained outstanding.   
29. In NAMA, work on non-tariff barriers, which was not at the heart of the modalities, was 
thought by some to be moving forward.  However, his delegation only saw efforts being concentrated 
on a few selected proposals.  If Members did not get p ast this stage, if work on paragraph 24 was not 
better organized, he did not see any possibility of an  agreement on this matter.  With regard to 
services, despite the number of meetings and partia l advancements in national regulations and specific 
commitments, there was no con sensus among Members on the most important matter, namely the 
assessment of what had been achieved in market access.  Cuba believed that the most promising 
scenario was in services, where modalities had been defined and adopted some time ago.  The outcome of exchanges of concessions would depend on what happened in other areas.  The remainder 
of the issues were in a similar state.  He said th at while the dearth of progress remained a concern, 
backward movement in certain areas and potential backward movement in others, was a matter of 
even greater concern.  If this negative trend w as not reversed, no progress towards conclusion of the 
work would be possible.   
30. Concerning the elements to be taken into acc ount for the diagnosis of the situation, his 
delegations wished to make a number of points.  Cuba appreciated the Chairs' reports, but it should be pointed out that these reports were only summaries of the general state of the work in progress, limited by individual perceptions.  These reports, due  to their factual nature, did not encompass the 
whole range of interests and difficulties that th e proposals or documents represented for the entire 
Membership.  Their proposals and suggestions on ho w to move forward were similarly personal and 
could not determine the future course of acti on unless Members discussed and adopted them.  
Although this type of open format meeting offered an opportunity for all Members to express their 
points of view, what counted was that all points of vi ew were given equal attention.  He warned that 
no one should make the mistake of thinking that by  accommodating the interests of the main trading 
nations, or by resolving the basic issues, the way would be cleared for concluding the Round.   
31. He noted that the objectivity with which many delegations had observed this process had been 
more beneficial than the excessive optimism that had been transmitted through these reports, and the 
repeated restatements in this room of the pr onouncements by the G-20 leaders about their firm 
commitment to finalize the Round in the last two y ears.  The stage of communicational enthusiasm  TN/C/M/30 
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  should be replaced by critical, purposeful and pe rmanent realism.  If Me mbers already knew that 
reaching an agreement on modalities in 2010 was im possible, because of outstanding political issues, 
it would make sense to work on the many less im portant pending aspects of the modalities, which 
were seen and used as bargaining chip s in the negotiation.  This could be a possible avenue to explore 
in order to identify these matters and work on th em.  The negotiating Chairs frequenly told Members 
that  some topics appeared to be ready when the ti me came to make a decision.  Cuba believed that 
only when that moment finally arrived, would it make sense to meet again in this format.   
32. He said that if Members failed to focus on the core elements of the Round in the coming 
months and continued to avoid key development issu es, such as less than full reciprocity, or special 
and differential treatment provisions which were of  real value, alternative ideas on how to proceed 
would no doubt emerge.  One such idea could be to strengthen the Organization by revising its 
institutional framework.  There were some who be lieved that the WTO agreements needed to be 
updated and that the way in which the Organizati on was run should be improved.  Cuba supported 
both ideas, but both updating the rules and improving the institutional framework must be geared to 
obtaining a trade framework that benefited the deve loping countries, especially those that had not 
increased their share of world trade during the years of existence of the WTO.  Trading rules had to 
favour fairness in the distribution of global wealth.  This was easy to measure but had not yet been 
achieved.   
33. He noted that in 2009, the focal year of th e worst financial and economic crisis in recent 
memory, the number of starving people in the world had increased to more than a billion according to 
the FAO, while at the same time , according to Forbes Magazine, th e number of dollar billionaires had 
increased to more than a million.  Hand-wringi ng about this did not depend on support for one 
ideology or another, it depended on having a mini mum awareness of the shameful condition of the 
world, and a grain of intelligence to understand th at it was unsustainable.  The wealthy would not be 
guaranteed their fortunes if they did not act to improve conditions for the poor.   
34. He said that 15 years on from the establishment of  the current system of agreements, resulting 
from the most ambitious trade Round ever negotiated, it was high time to conduct a critical review of 
the role of those agreements in the development of all Members.  The macroeconomic figures did a 
good job of masking the existing inequalities and the de bt owed to the underdeveloped world.  It was 
necessary to analyse how much blame for this state of  affairs lay with trade rules.  Reiterating that 
Members were committed and wanted to conclude the Round would be unnecessary.  He asked how it 
would be possible for any of the countries that for centuries had been colonies and neo-colonies, not 
to wish to overcome the poverty left behind by the metropolitan powers, after these powers had looted 
their resources and victimized their peoples.  He questioned how it was conceivable that these 
countries, which made up the majority in this Or ganization, would not want an agreement that 
promoted development.   
35. The representative of Burkina Faso , speaking on behalf of the Cotton 4 (C4) , welcomed the 
opportunity to  review progress of the Doha Round  negotiations.  The C4 had done everything in its 
power, both bilaterally and multilatera lly, along with the other players in the Cotton dossier, to get 
things moving in the right direction.  Several effort s had been made, but they had been to no avail.  
His delegation believed that it took at least two part ies to negotiate.  Yet, there were 153 Members in 
the WTO who had still not managed to negotiate this area.   
36. He noted that in the current context, the C4 felt hopelessly alone and was hoping for greater 
commitment by the various parties to resolve th e Cotton issue expeditiously and ambitiously.  He 
expressed the hope that perhaps when health care reform had been adopted in Washington D.C., 
would it be possible to show a little more concern for the health and survival of Cotton producers 
outside the United States of America.   TN/C/M/30 
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  37. The representative of Mauritius
, speaking on behalf of the ACP Group , said that nobody 
believed that fixing the Doha Round  was going to be easy.  But it was important that Members did not 
allow their difficulties to overpower the will to look for solutions and give way to a creeping fatalism 
about its relevance.  It was regrettable th at since 2008, Members had not made significant 
breakthroughs that could change the pace or direc tion of negotiati ons in a meaningful way.  The 
disheartening thing was not the extent of the outst anding differences, but the apparently entrenched 
nature of these gaps.   
38. He said that real negotiations instructed by r eal political will to find solutions could overcome 
the present stalemate.  The ACP Group took a very constructive approach in addressing some of its 
key concerns in the negotiations.  Instead of harden ing the line, the ACPs had agreed, in a spirit of 
flexibility, to find a solution on what had until then  been an intractable conundrum of three issues:  
preferences, tropical products and bananas.  Th e group therefore considered that the December 
accords on these interlinked set of issues, which it hoped would be multilateralised soon, were a part 
of our contribution to efforts aimed at putting the DDA back on track.   
39. The ACP Group, therefore, recommited itself to working with a sense of utmost urgency to 
move the negotiations forward and called on all WT O Members to do the same.  A sound rule-based 
global trading system was in the interest of ev ery country and particular ly small and vulnerable 
players.  However, it was also clear that if Members did not change gear, things would not change by themselves.  Despite the goodwill of the negotiatin g bodies and their chairs, the negotiating process 
was not yielding results.  He said that the biggest stum bling block remained the deficit in political will 
to address meaning-fully the remaining gaps.   
40. The ACPs believed that the priority of the mome nt was to ignite a political process that would 
translate political discourse into reality and empower  negotiators with the flexibility required to 
engage in a meaningful negotiating process.  Identif ying the real gaps and their extent and canvassing 
a political process to address them wa s the priority of the moment.   
41. Whatever the next steps, the ACPs insisted on the following principles:  (a) the need for 
transparency;  (b) non-selectivity, i.e. no issue s hould be sidelined or relegated although some issues 
required more time and energy;  (c) the need to main tain the balance reached in the texts and therefore 
no unravelling of the stabilised texts and;  (d) priority of the multilateral process and multilateralisation of outcomes to ensu re ownership and inclusiveness.   
42. In this respect, the ACP Group wished to under score that in the course of the stocktaking 
exercise and its aftermath, the Group's key concerns  and interests in the DD A had to be duly taken 
into consideration and in full consonan ce with these principles.  These covered, inter alia, the 
integration of the development di mension in all negotiating areas, the need to lock-in the December 
accords on preferences, tropical products and banana s, Cotton, a user-friendly SSM, including a user-
friendly SSM Plus for SVEs, preferences in NA MA, and appropriate flexibilities for SVEs in 
Fisheries Subsidies and in Trade Facilitation as we ll as DFQF for LDCs, to name but a few.   
43. The representative of Indonesia
, speaking on behalf of the G-33 , said his Group was ready to 
support the effort to take stock of the current state- of-play of the Round with the aim of arriving at an 
acceptable future course of action.   
44. The stocktaking exercise provided the opportunity to renew Members' commitment to the 
development objectives of the R ound and generate new political mo mentum to conclude the Round 
that delivered the development di vidends it had promised  in Doha in 2001 and in Hong Kong in 2005.  
The developing countries, especially the less-deve loped among them, stood to gain from a successful 
conclusion of the Round that was faithful to its development mandate.  The conclusion of the Round, 
therefore, was most imperative and had to result in enhancement of the role of the WTO in advancing  TN/C/M/30 
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  the development goals of devel oping countries and making its provisi ons of special and differential 
(S&D) treatment operational.   
45. In agriculture, he said that the Doha Round mu st fulfil its mandate requiring that the S&D 
provisions be operationally effective to enable deve loping countries to adequately take into account 
their food security, livelihood security and rural development needs.  Most developing countries 
urgently needed better protection of the livelihoo d of farmers.  The recent crisis had clearly 
highlighted the vulnerabilities within agriculture systems and the need for safeguarding the livelihoods of poor and vulnerable people.  Th e G-33 had always been committed to engaging 
constructively in the agriculture negotiations and supported an early conclusion of the Round which 
yielded a balanced and pro-development outcome.  The G-33 Members had continued working with 
the COA-SS Chair and other Members on the outstanding issues of the SSM, with a view to 
establishing a simple and effective SSM.   
46. Since last year, the G-33 had positively responded to the call by the COA-SS Chair to take 
part in technical consultations in order to resolve the gaps
 that remained in the draft Agriculture 
Modalities.  The Group would continue to show will ingness to discuss more technical aspects of the 
SSM with the aim of providing a better understanding on the details of the issue and its architecture.  
He said that his Group had also invited techni cal contributions from Members with the hope of 
finding a way forward and to reaching a compromise on the issue.   
47. He reiterated that while the Chair had been rightly focusing on the bracketed and annotated 
portions in the Rev.4 text, other issues in the text remained unresolved.  It was his expectation that 
the path of intensive technical consultations on SSM was commensurately matched by parallel 
intensified work in other areas of the Round where gaps remained.  SSM was just one of many other 
pending issues in the draft Agriculture Modalities.  The Group would therefore want to see that the 
stocktaking exercise concluded with the nomination of  all the pending issues that Members wanted to 
further address.   
48. Finally, the G-33 believed that a collective effo rt to reach the end-point of the Doha Round 
was needed and called upon all Members to reinvigor ate the political will required to conclude the 
Round.   
49. The representative of Bangladesh  associated his delegation with the statement by Zambia 
made on behalf of the LDC Group.  He said that since July 2008,  progress in negotiations had 
been painfully slow.  Ministers in December had pr udently decided to take stock of the situation 
and he expected that the current exercise would result in a work plan for the earliest possible 
conclusion of the Round.  The LDCs were the worst affected by the delay in concluding the 
Round and the situation had been further aggravated following the food, fuel and financial crises.  Therefore, the urgency to satisfactorily resolve the LDCs specific issues was greater than 
ever.  Against this backdrop, LDC Ministers had met in Dar-es-Salaam in October 2009
 and had 
identified their priorities as contained in the declaration.   
50. Bangladesh expressed the hope that in developing a future work plan, Members would 
take into consideration the LDCs  issues as contained in the Dar-es-Salaam Declaration and the 
decisions adopted by the LDC Ministers in their meeting in Geneva held immediately prior to 
the 7th WTO Ministerial Meeting.  His delegation felt that to make real progress in negotiations, 
Members needed to reflect on the reservations indicated by various delegations on the current negotiating texts.   
51. The representative of Barbados , speaking on behalf of the SVEs , said that Members,  found 
themselves at the crossroads of a sobering reality.  The details on how to proceed next and the specific TN/C/M/30 
Page 8  
 
  path on which to travel were for the moment uncl ear.  Nonetheless, Members already had a number of 
significant markers upon which the onward journey could and should build.   
52. The SVEs believed that the stocktaking should be based on achievements to date, especially 
where issues had already been stab ilised in text-based negotiations.  Th is was of particular importance 
in relation to SVE treatment in the tariff form ulations in Agriculture and NAMA and where the 
December 2008 texts remained the b asis for modalities negotiations.   
53. In the area of services where a considerable level of agreement had been reached at the 
multilateral level, a significant number of SVE delega tions considered that the elements outlined in 
the Chair's Report of July 2008, served as appropria te and adequate guidance for further work.   
54. She said that the next steps needed to build on all of these accomplishments in the interest of 
substantively moving the deliberations forward.  There should be no attempts to undermine any 
progress attained thus far, which could unravel th e careful balance that Members had worked hard 
over the last few years to realise.   
55. SVEs were keen to see the fulfilment of an  effective development dimension of the DDA, 
which could facilitate their fuller integration into the multilateral trading system.  She looked forward 
to further and fuller discussions on special and diffe rential treatment with Members in the area of 
Trade Facilitation, as well as on proposals of specifi c interest, including the SSM in Agriculture, and 
on additional flexibilities under Article III of the Chair's Draft text on Fisheries Subsidies.   
56. She stressed that the multilateral track offered th e greatest level of inclusion and transparency 
required to complete the task:  before Members.   She reiterated the commitment of the SVEs to 
collaborating with other Members towards a successf ul and development-oriented outcome to this 
Doha Round.   
57. The representative of Peru
 said her country was committed to concluding the Round as 
quickly as possible.  To that end, it was urgently necessary to determine, in a precise and quantifiable 
manner, the elements that would make it possible to  close the gaps in each of the negotiating areas, on 
the basis of a horizontal and integrated approach.  Her delegation was aware that this would be no 
easy task and that it would require clear political will and commitment to the multilateral trading 
system, so as to enable Members overcome domestic  problems.  Her delegation was clear about the 
Round's fundamental contribution to the growth of ov erall trade flows and to the economic and social 
development of all countries, especially developing countries.   
58. She said that Peru was promoting an ambitious  agenda for bilateral trade negotiations.  
Although Peru had reached trade agreements with its main trading partners, it remained convinced of 
the important and urgent need to drive forwar d and conclude these multilateral negotiations.  For 
Peru, the most important issues of the Doha Round  negotiations were greater security, transparency, 
and predictability, both in market access to a ll countries and in multilateral trading rules that only 
WTO agreements could offer.   
59. Peru did not want minimalist results, but extens ive reforms that would effectively liberalize 
trade.  She said that failures in international trade could only be remedied at the multilateral level.  
She believed that what was currently on the Doha  Round negotiating table would serve to improve 
and substantially strengthen the multilateral tradi ng system.  Peru was concerned at the risk of 
backward movement in the negotiations after signifi cant advances on the substantive aspects.  Hence, 
her delegation emphasized the need to continue  negotiating on the basis of the draft modalities 
achieved by the Chairs of the Negotiating Groups in order to capitalize without loss on the progress 
already made.  Peru was willing to work intensivel y, in whatever format or formats necessary, to 
reach an appropriately multilateralized, tr ansparent and balanced agreement.    TN/C/M/30 
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  60. For Peru, the protection of biodiversity under th e patents regime of the TRIPS Agreement was 
a priority and her delegation had worked hard to de monstrate the way in which the current regime did 
not afford proper protection to its  genetic resources and to the traditional knowledge associated with 
those resources.  In addition, her delegation had a pa rticular interest in achieving the elimination of 
fisheries subsidies which contributed to excess capaci ty and over fishing, and which had impacted on 
fisheries resources,  in greater Mode 4commitments  for the supply of services through the presence of 
natural persons and in improving the disciplines of the Anti-Dumping Agreement.   
61. In agriculture, her delegation stressed the im portance of maintaining the commitment to 
eliminate export subsidies in 2013 and defining clear  disciplines that aimed to free the market from all 
types of distortions.  In terms of development, this  was a vital political signal from this Organization 
and its Members.  For Peru, comprehensive lib eralization of tropical products was extremely 
important and her delegation sought an expeditious and ambitious outcome  in this area.  Similarly, her 
delegation believed that decisions should be ma de on the new special agricultural safeguard 
mechanism, so as to make it effective, but without  restricting trade between developing countries.   
62. In the case of NAMA, Peru was one of the few developing countries that  was going to apply 
the Swiss formula without seeking to use any flexibi lities.  As a result, her delegation believed that 
sectoral negotiations had to be on a voluntary basis, as prescribed by the Hong Kong Mandate.   
63. Peru agreed on the urgent need to advance the negotiations effectively and that failure to do 
so would have extremely negative effects on the glob al economic recovery.  She reiterated that it was 
time to ensure that the will of the political lead ers remained strong and unequivocal and that Members 
were capable of effectively translating this in to specific agreements satisfactory to all.   
64. The Chairman  proposed to adjourn the meeting to allow for consultations among Members to 
proceed, an to reconvene on Friday 26 March at 10.30 am.   
65. The TNC so agreed . 
4. Statement made by the Chairman – 26th March 2010 
66. The Chairman  delivered his report as contained in JOB/TNC/2.  Following these opening 
remarks, he opened the floor to delegations.   
5. Statements by Participants 
67. All delegations that spoke thanked the Chair of the TNC and the Chairs of the various 
Negotiating bodies for their reports and expressed their commitment to continue participating 
constructively in the further process.   
68. The representative of Brazil , speaking on behalf of the G-20 , recalled the two general 
principles stated by the G-20 in document JOB( 09)/174, of 23 November 2009:  (i) that the 
December 2008 draft modalities were the basis for negotiations and represented the end-game in 
terms of the landing zones of ambition.  He stresse d that any marginal adjustments in the level of 
ambition of those texts could only be assessed in th e context of the overall balance of trade-offs, 
taking into consideration that Agriculture was the engine of the Round and;  (ii) that the draft 
modalities  embodied a delicate balance achieved after eight years of negotiations.  This equilibrium 
had to be respected unless the entire package were to  be re-adjusted with the horizontal repercussions 
this would entail.  Such readjustments coul d not entail additional unilateral concessions from 
developing countries.   TN/C/M/30 
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  69. The G-20 regretted that, despite its best effort s, no meaningful substantive progress had been 
achieved over the past several months.  He supported the new process announced by the 
Director-General and welcomed two elements in particular:  (i) th at alongside the Negotiating Groups' 
work, the DG would also conduct consultations on the key issues that had led to a general negotiating 
impasse.  To move forward, Members could no lo nger avoid these enabling issues and had to identify 
and measure the existing gaps in those critical areas a nd;  (ii) this exercise had to be conducted by the 
membership as a whole.  He said that such horiz ontal discussions could potentially affect the whole 
membership and Members had to take collective owne rship of the difficult political decisions that lay 
ahead.   
70. The G-20 maintained the terms of its ministerial declaration issued on 29 November 2009.  
The Group was prepared to engage constructivel y towards the objective of achieving an ambitious 
and balanced outcome that delivered on the deve lopment objectives of the Round in accordance with 
the mandate.  The Group hoped that all WTO member s would be in a position to show the necessary 
political will to achieve these results.   
71. The representative of Egypt
, speaking on behalf of the Arab Group , said that the hopes of a 
stocktaking exercise that ushered the final spri nt of the Doha Round seemed farther away than 
desired.  He argued that Members should approach the negotiations with renewed spirit and a resolute 
unity of purpose to fulfil the goals that had spurre d the membership to embark on this journey nine 
years ago.  He reiterated that this was not the time to challenge the necessity of Doha, not for 
developing and not for developed countries.  The fina ncial crisis and its ensuing effects could not be 
used as an excuse for reneging on the promise of free trade.  In reality, free trade was exactly what the 
world needed at this juncture.  He said that there was no disagreement among economists on the 
positive effect of trade liberalization on the world economy and creating jobs.  He said that since  agreement in that respect was not lacking, nor sh ould there be any disagreement on the single most 
important component of Doha, namely  development.  He regretted that in that area, too, Members 
were deadlocked for no apparent objective reason.   
72. He said that the writing was on the wall.  If free trade was imperative for the future, then 
meaningful development that managed to level th e playing field for all players had to be the 
unequivocal priority and focus fo r the road ahead.  He lamented  the absence of discussions and 
consultations on the issue of development during the stocktaking week.   
73. Although he acknowledged the difficulties th e current process had faced in advancing 
negotiations and achieving the desired progress, his group considered that process alone could not be 
blamed for the current stalemate.  He said that th e success of any future path in the negotiations would 
depend on real political leadership and enga gement, which had so far been absent.   
74. He noted that opening up the negotiations should only aim at helping us achieve our desired 
level of ambition, especially on the issue of de velopment.  Finding substantive compromises that 
barely moved the membership forward was not something the Arab Group could support.  He said 
that the Arab Group would support any effort that  aimed at building a much stronger boat to get 
Members safe into harbour, without detracting from th e progress achieved so far.  In other words, any 
future process of negotiations, whether with or wit hout a horizontal dimension, had to be sufficiently 
representative of developing countries' interests to deliver on the developmental mandates and 
necessary flexibilities for developing countries in all th e negotiating tracks.  He stressed the centrality 
of the multilateral track and cauti oned the membership on attempting to re-interpret the mandates, 
backtracking on commitments or lowering the leve l of ambition at the expense of developing 
countries.  The Arab Group shared the views of many developing countries on the necessity of upholding the mandates and building on the progress ach ieved so far, and the need to counter new 
notions introduced to the detriment of the development component of the Doha Round.    TN/C/M/30 
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  75.  He stressed that the Arab contribution to th e negotiations and the multilateral trading system 
could be further enhanced, th rough expediting the process of acceding Arab countries and by 
positively considering the accession request submitted by Syria, as well as that of Palestine, as a 
separate customs territory, to obtain observer status at the General Council and its subsidiary bodies.   
76. The representative of Zambia , speaking on behalf of the LDCs , said the Group had assessed 
the contents of the Chairs' reports and the overa ll process of engagement during this stocktaking 
exercise and wished to highlight the following:  (i ) the reports had given some level of clarity with 
regard to where progress had been made since 2008 and where the major gaps were.  These reports 
had been a useful basis for engagement during the in formal consultations and would continue to serve 
as an important reference point for our future work  and;  (ii) it had emerged from the stocktaking 
exercise that members were eager to engage with a view to concluding the round sooner than later.   
77. For the LDC Group, there could not be any better solution than concluding the Round early.  
Any further delay to concluding the Round was a deni al of development to the most vulnerable and 
weak members of the WTO.  LDCs had and continue d to have high expectati ons in concluding this 
Round in view of its link to development, but had been disappointed that the conclusion of the Round 
had been held hostage because of lack of moveme nt on issues that concerned developed and some 
developing country partners.  He said that the LDCs  had found themselves in an awkward situation of 
holding on to decisions, which should be in an advanced stage of implementation.   
78. He stressed that it was not the LDCs delaying the conclusion of this Round or stalling the 
negotiations.  However, it was the LDCs that suffe red the greatest negative economic impact with the 
delayed conclusion and as a result his Group was asking Members to agree to an early harvest.  With 
regard to an early harvest, there were issues such  as DFQF where a de facto acceptance existed and 
where most developed country Members had already implemented this in the form of various GSP 
schemes.  What was required now, he said, was the political will to implement a decision formalizing 
an early harvest for LDCs.   
79. With regards to Cotton, he noted that Minister s had made a decision regarding this matter in 
the Hong Kong Declaration which had committed Memb ers to ensure that the issue of Cotton was 
addressed ambitiously, expeditiously and specifically, within the Agri culture negotiations in relation 
to all trade-distorting policies affecting the sect or in market access, domestic support and export 
competition.  Furthermore, Members committed tha t:  (i) all forms of export subsidies for Cotton 
would be eliminated by developed countries in 20 06, developed countries would give DFQF to Cotton 
exports from LDCs, and trade distorting domestic subsidies for Cotton production would be reduced 
more ambitiously;  (ii) movement had been lack ing in the trade aspects of the Cotton mandate and 
parties had tied the solution to the conclusion of the Round.  This compounded the negative impact of 
any delays in the conclusion of the Doha Round  for LDCs whose economies were dependent on 
Cotton.  He said that it was for this reason that the LDC Ministerial Declaration of October 2009 had 
asked for an early harvest on this issue.   
80. On Services, he referred to the report of th e Chair of the Special Session of the Council for 
Trade in Services which stated that on LDC Moda lities substantial progress had been made.  The LDC 
Group was hopeful that Members would continue to e ngage positively in order to finalize the draft 
waiver decision.   
81. He noted that as Members began to focus on closing the gaps that had been identified from 
the stocktaking exercise, it would be important to have clarity on the roadmap.  This did not mean, 
however, that Members should spend much effort on process rather than substance as it was clear that 
only by addressing issues of substance would th e membership achieve meaningful progress.   TN/C/M/30 
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  82. Finally, he reiterated that the LDC Group wished to see a timely and successful conclusion of 
the Round in order to ensure that the rules-based multilateral trading system not only maintained its 
credibility but also remained relevant to the global economy in view of the emerging global 
challenges.   
83. The representative of Mauritius
, speaking on behalf of the ACP Group , said that the reports 
from the Chairs had identified areas where gaps needed to be bridged.  He agreed that in some areas 
Members had not been able to quantify the extent of these gaps which would have facilitated 
identifying a starting point for negotiations.  This w ould be one of the tasks following the stocktaking.  
He believed that maintaining the centrality of the different negotiating groups  in the negotiations was 
a very important element, mainly for small countri es, as it confirmed the multilateral nature of the 
process and its inclusiveness.   
84. The ACP Group agreed that some variable geom etry was required as it enabled more specific 
and in-depth engagement.  But this should be mo re the exception than the rule and Members would 
have to make sure that transparency prevaile d and that outcomes were re-oriented towards the 
multilateral process.  Any horizontal process should be fu lly inclusive.  He reiterated the need not to 
unravel the existing balance in the texts which had been carefully negotiated and provided security to 
many Members.  On the contrary, the ACP Group w ould invite the Chairs to capture the gains and 
advances made recently by issuing an addendum to th eir texts.  He said that in the areas of tropical 
products and preferences this coul d be done straight away.   
85. With respect to ministerial engagement, his Group believed that using gatherings, like the 
OECD, APEC and others to get greater clarity a nd engage Ministers would be the most sensible 
approach.  He cautioned that such meetings might not be inclusive and representative enough and, as 
a result, Members would have to keep open the possi bility of a more formal ministerial engagement 
down the line if the situation demanded it.  He unde rscored the Group's belief that the lack of real 
political will was one of the ingredients missing in the DDA equation.   
86. The representative of Gabon , speaking on behalf of the African Group , said that he remained 
concerned with the conduct of the process and the method of operation.  He recalled that development 
had to remain at the heart of the process.  His Gr oup had been discouraged by the lack of commitment 
on the part of certain Members at a time when  economic challenges to development are more 
important than even on the African Continent.   
87. The African Group believed that variable geom etry consultations on key problems should be 
conducted by the Chairs of the various negotia ting groups.  However, any process involving small 
groups needed to respect the principles of transp arency, multilateralism and inclusiveness.  It was 
therefore essential that all parties were involved e qually.  He concluded by encouraging the Chairman 
to continue his political c onsultations for a satisfactory outcome to the DDA.   
88. The representative of Viet Nam , speaking on behalf of ASEAN , said that ASEAN shared the 
deep concerns over the slow progress of the Doha R ound.  He supported the multiple track work plan 
as outlined by the Chair and urged Members to urge ntly explore all avenues to identify and address 
technical and political gaps in the negotiation area as well as possible trade-offs  across the board.  He 
emphasized that in these processes, the principles of full participation, transp arency and inclusiveness 
for all Members should be fully respected.   
89. He called upon all Members to show flexibility and compromise so as to move the Round 
forward and to preserve the results achieved so far. 
90. The representative of Australia , said that the CAIRNS Group had met during the week to 
discuss the current situation.  In addition, CAIRNS Group Ministers would be meeting in  TN/C/M/30 
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  Punta del Este  from the 19 to 21 April.  He said that alt hough the current assessment of the situation 
in the negotiations was a sobering one, it was accura te and honest.  It would be a mistake to paper 
over the difficulty of the current situation.  He said that Members had been in similar situations before 
in this negotiation, in previous Rounds and in other multilateral negotiations.  He said that all 
Members knew that large multilateral efforts did no t move smoothly at all times and that setbacks 
were not uncommon.  During some periods, harder work was required to find a way forward and often 
the solutions were not always apparent.  He also noted that experience had shown that brinkmanship 
did not work.  He emphasized the fact that Me mbers persevered and remained committed was of 
crucial importance for the Round and for the Organization.   
91. He expressed support for the process as outlined by  the Chair.  It was important that such a 
process was underpinned by a very sound multilate ral approach which observed the important 
development dimension of this Round.  The CAIR NS Group believed that Ministerial engagement 
was an important part of this process and would be looking to engage at ministerial level during the 
meeting in Punta del Este as well as on all other  opportunities.   
92. The representative of Jamaica , said that her delegation had taken note of the factual reports of 
the Chairs of the Negotiating Groups, including the ou tstanding gaps in the negotiations and the areas 
where further technical or political input would be required.  She noted that since September 2009, the 
membership had been engaged in a process charac terised by a combination of consultations and 
meetings in different formats with  a view to advancing technical wo rk in many areas and breaking the 
deadlock in the negotiations.  Desp ite these efforts, the process had not yielded the anticipated results, 
but rather had created some degree of anxiety a nd uncertainty about the future of the overall 
negotiations and the Doha Round.   
93. In the context of the future pr ocess, she outlined a number of issues of critical importance to 
her delegation.  First, in order to secure balance and ownership of the results  of the negotiations, the 
the primacy of the Geneva-based multilateral process anchored in the negotiating groups had to be 
maintained.   
94. Second, transparency and inclusiveness in  agenda-setting and decision-making were 
imperative, particularly when determining the scope of the issues to be addressed and the manner in 
which they would be dealt with.  She stressed that in  this context no group, country or issue should be 
sidelined in the negotiations.  Her delegation recognized  that some issues required more attention than 
others.  Jamaica  supported the Chair-led, bottom-up approach that had been a key characteristic of 
the negotiations so far.   
95. Third, any changes in the negotiating framewo rk should be clearly enunciated, understood 
and accepted by Members, and where a shortfall in te rms of inclusion existed,  full transparency was 
required.   
96. Fourth, Members should maintain and build on the progress achieved to date in the 
negotiations and should avoid backtracking or unrav elling in those areas which were considered 
stabilised and which had become part of the delicat e balance achieved in the negotiations.  Similarly, 
there should be no attempt to change or re-arrange  the sequencing of the negotiations as agreed in 
Hong Kong.   
97. Fifth, Members should never lose sight of the cen trality of the development dimension in the 
negotiations and the need to ensure that the de velopment needs and concerns of the developing 
countries were fully taken into account.  Jamaica in sisted that the development dimension should be 
adequately reflected in all negotiating ar eas, including Cotton, a user-friendly SSM, the 
mutlilateralization and concretisati on of the December Agreement on bananas, preferences, tropical 
products, NAMA preferences, appropriate special and di fferential treatment in fisheries subsidies and TN/C/M/30 
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  an appropriate mechanism for the delivery of special and differential treatment and technical 
assistance and capacity building in Trade Facilitation.   
98. Her delegation agreed that ministerial engagement would be important but cautioned that the 
scope and timing of involvement at the political level had to be carefully assessed and agreed by 
Members.  She concluded by saying that Jamaica fu lly supported the statements made by Mauritius 
on behalf of the ACP Group, Gabon on behalf of the African Group a nd Zambia on behalf of the LDC 
Group.   
99. The representative of Indonesia
 associated his delegation with the statement made by 
Vietnam on behalf of ASEAN and reaffirmed the points outlined by the G-33 during the TNC 
meeting on 22 March.   
100. Indonesia continued to support a swift conclusi on to the Doha Development Round, including 
the work immediately following the stocktaking.  He expressed the hope for a continuation of the 
Geneva-based negotiation process in its various mul tilateral formats.  There was a need for a Chair-
led consultative process which could further address the outstanding technical issues in each negotiating area and bridge the remaining gaps.  He also supported for small group HODs and Senior 
Officials processes to further assess the size of the remaining gaps and to discuss possible ways out, 
such as through a horizontal process.   
101. Indonesia believed that Ministerial engageme nts would be of critical importance for 
addressing political issues, finding compromise within  the landing zone and fostering a negotiating 
environment for the Geneva-based technical discussions .  Bilateral and plurilateral talks could also be 
complementary to this process, but should not compromise the centrality of the multilateral process.   
102. The representative of Barbados
, speaking on behalf of Small and Vulnerable Economies 
(SVEs) , said that during the stocktaking she had detected an almost unanimous desire among 
delegations to continue working, which in itself was a positive reflection of engagement and a strong 
commitment to the process.  SVEs agreed that Members should look to consolidate and build on 
achievements to date, while avoiding backtracking.  Also, any further advances needed to maintain 
the centrality of a transparent Geneva-based multila teral process through th e Chair-led Negotiating 
Groups.  Similarly, the objective of fulfilling the development dimension of  the Round should be 
paramount.  She said that the task before Member s was to critically assess the size of the technical 
gaps identified during the stocktaking exercise so as to be able to apply the requisite political capital 
to move the negotiations to the next level.  It seeme d clear that a greater level of dedication, creativity 
and flexibility would be required from the memb ership in order to overcome the outstanding 
challenges.   
103. She noted that the current context of the Round had changed compared with when it was 
launched in 2001.  For SVEs still c onfronting substantial economic, trade and employment declines 
resulting from the global recession, the development gains from this Round had become all the more compelling and urgent.  It was in this light that her Group looked forward to deeper consideration of 
the specific flexibilities requested by SVEs to facilitate  their further integration into the global trading 
system and to an early consolidation of the ga ins achieved so far.  She cautioned that future 
deliberations in all areas across the negotiating spectrum should be constructive, purposeful and 
realistic and seek to prepare the groundwork for even tual consensus, based on ministerial intervention, 
at the appropriate time.   
104. The representative of El Salvador
, believed that the stocktaking exercise had been useful as it 
had provided Members with the opportunity to re flect jointly on progress made in the negotiations 
over the past years and on the principles which should govern future work.  She said that her delegation believed that it was essential that any future process took into account the development  TN/C/M/30 
 Page 15 
 
 
  dimension as the principal objective of these negotiations .  She agreed on the need to ensure that the 
multilateral process remained the approach unde r which pending issues should be discussed.  
Similarly, it was essential to build future work on the basis of the progress achieved to date in the 
various areas of negotiation and avoid backtracking on any agreements already reached or reopening 
the delicate balances outlined.   
105. Regarding the question of building on the progr ess made, it was particularly important to 
mention the areas of negotiation in agriculture and NAMA for which there were already draft texts.  
These December 2008 texts took account of the sign ificant progress which had been made over many 
years of negotiation, including the flexibility for small economies that was of fundamental importance for El Salvador.  In the area of Services, the July 2008 report from the Chair was an appropriate tool 
that could continue to guide future work.   
106. She emphasized that the Organization's future work should take into account the current 
economic situation.  The financial crisis had affected developing c ountries, especially the smallest and 
most vulnerable, to a greater extent.  She noted that all Members had rec ognized the importance of 
achieving the common objective of concluding the D oha Round.  Her delega tion believed that the 
stocktaking had been valuable in reaffirming th is commitment, including allowing a pause along the 
way to consider what should be the future st eps to bring the process to a successful end.   
107. She took note of the ideas which had been put fo rward by other delegations during the week 
on how to move the process forward, including intens ifying substantive work in Geneva and prepare 
the ground for political decisions.  She said that Memb ers needed to collectively consider when would 
be the most appropriate moment to hold a meeting at the highest level.  El Salvador was of the view 
that many of the ideas on the table would bear fru it provided that there were frank discussions among 
all Members in which new and creative ideas were expl ored on how to tackle the most sensitive issues 
that remained pending in various areas of negotiation and without losing sight of the whole picture.   
108. Her delegation believed that there was a coll ective responsibility to consider the economic 
and political costs of this process and Members ha d to act with caution when sending out positive 
signals about their countries' commitment to concl ude the Round.  Her delega tion would continue to 
work constructively both individually and in the va rious groups with those which shared its position 
and interests with the objective of  achieving a balan ced final result that respon ds to the needs of all 
Members, but especially developing countries.   
109. The representative of Japan
 stated that his delegation would continue to be actively and 
seriously engaged in the ongoing negotiation pro cess for an early and successful conclusion of the 
Doha Round.  He emphasized that the engagement of all Members was vital in this endeavour as 
many outstanding issues remained.  He said that it was imperative to arrive at an overall picture of the negotiations by conducting further ne gotiations at the bilateral, plur ilateral and multilateral levels as 
well as continuing work in the Negotiating Groups in a transparent manner.   
110. The representative of the European Union
 said that the stocktaking exercise had been useful 
insofar as it had produced a sober, modest, realis tic but not unduly pessimistic assessment of where 
Members were.  His delegation took heart from th e observation that all Members without exception 
remained committed to conclude the Round as soon as possible.   
111. He also noted that the Chairs' reports provided a fairly complete picture of the situation in 
each area and of the issues that remained to be addressed.  The stocktaking had brought considerably 
more clarity on the size of the challenges faci ng the membership in the months ahead and his 
delegation supported the process forward as outlined by the Chair.   TN/C/M/30 
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  112. He agreed that the Negotiating Groups should cont inue to carry out essential preparations and 
technical work, consolidating and building on pr ogress made and avoiding any backtracking or 
disruption of the mandates that Members had alre ady agreed.  He supported the combination of 
processes as suggested by the Chair aimed at addre ssing more squarely the substantive differences 
and seeking to close the gaps, with a greate r emphasis on transparency and on multilateral 
engagement.  Members would now need to focus in  a more holistic way on the divergences so that 
everybody could judge the potential implications for an area of the negotiations of proposals or solutions proposed elsewhere and whethe r the overall balance was maintained.   
113. His delegation hoped that the next phase of work  would prove to be qualitatively different and 
facilitate progress.  The work over the coming week s and months would help close the gaps and put 
the membership in a better place, at least technically , when it came to the point of political decision 
making.   
114. The representative of Mexico
 said that the current political situation prevented Members from 
finding themselves in the final leg of the negotiati ons.  If this had been the case, the coordinated 
involvement of ambassadors, Senior Officials and even Ministers would have been essential.  She 
noted that at the same time everybody did not want the Round to be suspended.   
115. She said that her delegation believed that all par ticipants had made an effort to adjust to 
circumstances, including being proactive and creativ e in order to stimulate a new process for the work 
ahead.  This process would be characterized by a num ber of elements:  (i) the "Geneva-zation" of the 
process in which the next step belonged to ambass adors in Geneva and where the intervention of 
Senior Officials and/or Ministers would only come if progress had been made on the central issues;  
(ii) at the same time, any future meetings to be held by our political leaders should be utilized as 
expressions of their commitment and would continue to be crucial;  (iii) there would have to be more 
focus on substance and less discussion on process and agreement would have to be reached on those 
issues on which the conclusion or non-conclusion of th e Round depended;  (iv) the feeling of urgency 
rather than a predetermined time-frame would de termine the duration of the process and flexibility 
would prevail over rigidity and;  (v) although it  was important to maintain transparency and 
multilateralism, it was also recognized that bilatera l and plurilateral discussions should predominate, 
sometimes with guidance from th e Chairs of Negotiating Groups or the Director-General.   
116. She expressed the hope that discussions within i ssues and at the same time between issues 
would be open.  Her delegation belie ved this was the only way to identify concerns more easily and to 
find a solution to them by seeking new balances.  Members should aim for the most and not for the 
least and should aim to agree on a package which was not only feasible but also sellable in the 
domestic setting of each Member.   
117. The representative of India  said that given the waning confidence of the world outside about 
the prospects of the Doha Round, this stocktaking week had provided a good opportunity to work on 
three objectives, namely (i) taking stock on where Members were;  (ii) redefining the negotiating 
objectives for the year based on the lessons of the last  six months of engagement;  (iii) and preparing 
for a new phase of engagement.  Although greater cl arity on the first and third objectives had been 
achieved, his delegation was somewhat intrigued with the loud silence on the second.  There was 
nothing to suggest that the political constraints that had impeded progress over the last six months would suddenly disappear in the next six months.  This had clear implications for what could be 
achieved in 2010.   
118. Turning to the issue of Agriculture, India belie ved that Members needed to have a serious 
horizontal discussion regarding the demands for a dditional flexibilities by developed countries in 
agricultural market access.  Accommodation of these demands would drain the agricultural negotiations of whatever ambition was achieved th rough the formula cuts.  The principle of buying  TN/C/M/30 
 Page 17 
 
 
  your way out of commitments could not be the basi s of negotiations.  If Members failed to draw a 
tight line on this issue, we could not prevent dow nstream effects on the ambition in other areas.  His 
delegation agreed with the Chair that the SSM was a politically charged issue.  It also happened to be 
a key determinant of the development intentions of the Round.  There were a number of equally 
politically charged issues in domestic support and ma rket access which were barely being discussed.  
If Members were to have a horizontal process even w ithin agriculture, they would need to come to 
terms with all these issues like OTDS, Green Box, Bl ue Box, developed country flexibilities, etc.  He 
believed that Members could not focus their efforts on just one or two issues and set the rest aside on 
the ground that they were political.  At this stag e, everything was political.  He said that Members 
could not proceed on the assumption that some areas must remain out of bounds for the whole 
membership.  The consequences of th at approach had been seen on the Tropical Products issue.  On 
the issue of Cotton, it was important that Member s took the covers off and had a serious political 
multilateral discussion.  The fact of the matter remain ed that there was only one proposal on the table, 
which was unbracketed and unannotated.  If this w as being challenged, it would be for those who 
challenge it to put forward a counter proposal.  His delegation remained convinced that the 
membership could not continue to deal w ith this important issue on tip toes.   
119. On NAMA, he said that the considerable technical engagement on NTBs over the last few 
months had paved the way for text-based negotiations  on a number of proposals.  India looked  
forward to a Chair-led process to  discuss the important outstanding issues like sectorals, country 
specific flexibilities, etc.  in a manner consistent with the mandate.   
120. In the area of TRIPS, he noted that the propo nents of W/52 viewed the three issues of the GI 
register, GI extension and the TRIPS-CBD rela tionship as an integrated whole.  The DG-led 
consultative process on the last two issues had been useful in clarifying a number of technical and other issues.  It was important that Members conti nued to make progress on these issues to prepare the 
ground for a Ministerial decision.  He stressed that his delegation viewed an outcome on these issues as an integral part of the outcome on the Doha Round.   
121. With respect to the CTD-SS, India expressed disappointment  with the lack of progress on the 
key issues under discussion.  Fundamental differen ces remained on the mandate and scope of the 
monitoring mechanism.  He found it difficult to agree with the Chair's ass essment that there was 
progress on the agreement specific proposals as there had been no discussion on these issues for about 
a year.   
122. In the context of Services, his delegation ag reed with the Chair' s assessment that no 
significant progress had been made on market access issues since July 2008.  His delegation had on 
earlier occasions provided specific details of the a nomalous situation created by developing countries 
having made disproportionately higher commitments in  this Round so far compared to the developed 
countries.  The negotiations could end with the an omaly in place and an outcome based on this 
anomalous situation would be a travesty of the develo pment mandate.  It was important that in future 
engagements Members focused more on the requests of developing countries for liberalizing sectors 
and modes of supply of their export interest, which had remained un-responded to so far.  He stressed 
that with the draft proposal on the LDC waiver circul ated, Members needed to expedite their efforts to 
attain finality on this important issue.  On domestic  regulation, he said that India continued to be 
disappointed.  The negotiating objective should be to  build on the requirements of GATS article 6.4, 
not detract from them.  Future efforts had to be based  on the 2009 text.  In the area of subsidies, India 
welcomed the information exchange work progra mme and hoped that the major trading partners 
would fully participate.   
123. On Trade Facilitation, he noted that there ha d been some progress through the consolidated 
draft text but that it required serious work before it was possible to move towards closure.  In this 
area, India believed there were no losers - simplification of trade procedures by reducing trading costs TN/C/M/30 
Page 18  
 
  was in the interest of all Members.  However,  he emphasized the need to keep in mind the 
implementation capacities of developing and least developed Members.  Th e mandate developed in 
July 2004 and in Hong Kong, clearly linked commitm ents to support and assistance for infrastructure 
development.  It was important that this linka ge was respected and that adequate assistance was 
provided for implementation of commitments so that a high standards agreement could be achieved.   
124. Regarding the way forward, his delegation belie ved that it was appropriate to begin a new 
phase of engagement with circumspection.  It would be unrealistic to expect dramatic progress in the next few months given that the political situation was unlikely to change for the better.  However, 
Members had no choice but to pursue this Sisyphean  task.  At the same time, it was important to 
approach the new phase of negotiations with a clear  understanding about their intent.  The purpose of 
these negotiations could not be to meet the unrealis tic demands of one or more Members for new or 
additional market access, but to come to a balanced  outcome in line with the development mandate.  
The development dimension had to be the defining  feature of all outcomes in the Round and the 
interests of smaller countries, especially the LDCs and SVEs, had to be firmly protected.  It should 
also be clear to all Members that a few developing countries could not be the bankers of the Round.  If 
additional demands were made on hi s delegation it would weigh them against the requirements of the 
development mandate and deal with them accor dingly.  He emphasized that any additional 
flexibilities from India side would require adjustment s and contributions by ot her Members in various 
areas of the negotiations.   
125. He concluded by stressing that while the membership would obviously have to continue to 
negotiate without deadlines, the process could not  continue endlessly without reaching closure.  
Members would have to deliver results at some time to retain credibility and at some point the 
membership would have to come to terms with th e demands of the LDCs and others for an early 
outcome.   
126. The representative of Bolivia
 said her delegation understood from the Chair's report that the 
further process would be multilateral negotiations in which all Members were involved in the 
discussions, where no fixed deadlines were set and wher e the focus would be on substantive issues.  
She noted that counter-productive practices persisted,  including the use of small, exclusive groups of 
variable geometry that did not allow all Members full participation.   
127. She noted, however, that this process was a mo re positive outcome than what had followed in 
July 2008 when the negotiations had broken down a nd an attempt had been made to decide on 
modalities for Agriculture and NAMA among a limited group of countries, or what had transpired in 
the more recent past with different-sized groups that  had not produced any results either.  It was clear 
that Members could not continue with such practi ces or continue to impose fixed deadlines.  Members 
needed to ask themselves whether such non-tran sparent, not very democratic and not very 
participatory practices had not weakened the institution, the Round and the credibility of the 
multilateral system as a whole.   
128. Her delegation believed that the Ch air's suggestion for next steps went in the right direction.  
However, Bolivia was looking for an effective nego tiating process that was inclusive and saw the full 
and democratic participation of Members.  Su ch a process should be transparent, bottom-up and 
should be conducted by the Members.  In other wo rds, a full multilateral process in which all of the 
Members, without exception, had the opportunity to  participate and negotiate, not simply to attend 
meetings at which they were informed  of negotiations in other sessions.   
129. She said that the principle upon which the Round ha d been created had not been covered in all 
respects and to the benefit of developing and le ast-developed countries.  This aspect had been 
relegated and even reversed because the Round ha d become a struggle to open up markets for the 
benefit of developed countries and special and differe ntial treatment had been made into a tool for  TN/C/M/30 
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  their convenience.  Her delegation questioned for whom these new flex ibilities were in fact intended.  
She said it was not clear whether it was for those who really needed them or, as seemed to be the case 
increasingly each day, for those who were least in need of them.   
130. In addition, Bolivia felt one could question the relevance of a Round that had been initiated 
almost nine years ago in an economic context whic h had definitively changed.  Major responsibility 
for the crisis lay with the financial systems in de veloped countries.  She believed that a serious and 
in-depth discussion of this Organization's share of  responsibility was needed, including taking into 
account other global crises such as the food crisis or  the climate crisis.  What was required was an 
honest reflection on the current situation of the Round.   
131. Finally, she said that the success of the Chai r's suggested further process would depend on 
whether developing countries felt there was enough in  it for them.  The promises of development had 
to be fulfilled and access to markets in develope d countries had to become a reality.  She also 
emphasized that developing countries needed su fficient political space to pursue development and 
poverty alleviation policies.  She regretted that at this juncture, that did not seem to be the case.   
132. The representative of South Africa  said that for developing countries that had begun this 
Round that it would address the inequities of the current trading system, and that it would create new 
opportunities for their development, the current im passe in the Doha Round had been frustrating and 
painful.  The distortions caused by the high levels of protection and trade distorting subsidies in agriculture in rich countries continued to dest abilize and undermine the productive potential of many 
developing countries, including South Africa.  The plight of Cotton farmers in Africa was a stark reminder of the inequity of the current regime.  LDCs were still waiting patiently for some dividends 
from the Doha Round, especially for the agreement Members had  reached in  Hong Kong to create 
new opportunities for their development by providing them with DFQF market access.   
133. He said that at the Ministerial Conference in December 2009, his Minister had pointed out 
that "South Africa was not part of the agreemen ts reached by some Members in the July 2008 
Package".  His delegation continued to believe that  the texts that had emerged "are imbalanced and 
reflect too much accommodation of the sensitivities of developed countries in agriculture, while 
demanding too much from developing countries in term s of reducing their applied industrial tariffs 
and policy space for industrial development".   
134. He said that Minister Davies had also stated that, "despite these reservations we have been 
willing to work to see whether, on the basis of th e existing texts, the specific problems posed for 
South Africa and SACU, arising from the historic injustice of South Africa's classification in the 
Uruguay Round as a 'developed country', can be resolved in a fair manner". 
135. He recognized that the current recession ha d caused job losses in many countries around the 
world with developing countries suffering the ma jor impact.  South Africa which already had 
23 per cent unemployment before the recession had lost close to a million jobs since then.  He found it disconcerting that the US remained the most signi ficant major player in the Doha Round that was 
unwilling to work on the basis of these multilatera l texts.  Its major constituencies and business 
lobbies were demanding more market access commitments  from its trading partners, particularly from 
the major emerging markets, including China, India and Brazil, with a longer list of countries in this 
targeted group that included South Africa.   
136. The representative of Switzerland
 said that the stocktaking exercise had been useful and an 
eye-opener to create the awareness ab out what was still to be done to finish the Round.  The aim of 
the process ahead should be to collect the ingredient s for Members to enter into the endgame.  She 
agreed that the next steps should be a combination of a parallel process with a variety of formats.   TN/C/M/30 
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  137. She argued that holding TNCs on a regular basis to  ensure transparency about the processes in 
all formats would allow for all Members to appr eciate what was going on.  While the Chair-led 
processes should be continued, the Chairs should al so prepare the basis for a horizontal discussion on 
the gaps in the different issues.  She supported furt her consultations with respect to the further process 
and its variable configurations.   
138. She agreed that interaction between Ministers was important but cautioned that the time had 
not yet arrived to call them to Geneva.  Ministers would engage in other fora, such as the CAIRNS 
Group, OECD and APEC and this interaction re mained very important for the Doha Round.   
139. Her delegation was convinced of the need to m ove forward and avoid backsliding.  Members 
needed to build on what they had achieved during eight years of negotiations.  On Agriculture and 
NAMA the December 2008 modalities represented a good basis for the negotiations.  The other issues 
of the single undertaking also had to be moved forward,  or rather, they needed to catch up.  The set-up 
of
 this round was one of a Single Undertaking and theref ore substantial results had to be reached in all 
the topics under negotiation, not only in Agriculture and NAMA, but also Services, Rules, the three 
TRIPS issues, including the GI register, GI-ext ension and TRIPS/CBD, Trade Facilitation and Trade 
and Environment.   
140. In the case of the report by the Chair of th e Agriculture negotiations, her delegation had 
detected that some options on tariff capping and reference to the SSG had been omitted in the 
annexes.  She expected that this would be rec tified and would be addressed further in the next 
agriculture consultations.   
141. She concluded by saying that all Members were aware that the contribution of trade to job 
creation was substantial.  She said that Swit zerland remained committed to continue working 
constructively with all Members.   
142. The representative of Cuba  said that during the stocktaking week a number of well-known 
phrases had been heard, including (i) "we are all dete rmined to conclude the Round - there is political 
will to do so;  (ii) the gaps have been better identified;   (iii) technical work has to be intensified;  (iv) 
Geneva should be the forum for negotiation par excellence and;  (v) the focus of the Round is 
development". 
143. He said that these phrases had also been articul ated in 2008 and 2009 with almost the same 
words.  Some had said all these things.  Others were said by a smaller group of Members.  The 
question was not to identify and diagnose as this ha d already been done.  The important thing was to 
agree on how to continue in order to overcome the critical stage reached in the negotiating Round.  
The paths proposed were not very different to tho se previously proposed.  It was not that these paths 
were wrong, but more a question of being sure that th ey were useful at this political moment in time 
while waiting for the announcement by one Member of its determination to join in the commitment to 
conclude the Doha Development Round.   
144. He said that the problems of imbalance wh ich developing countries had found in the WTO 
Agreements and rules shortly after having signed the Marrakesh Agreement, as well as the problems 
in implementing these Agreements, persisted despite the major efforts made for a long time to take 
into account and remedy these problems.  There were two dimensions to the implementation 
problems:  on the one hand, the absence of benefits for developing countries because of the way in which developed countries had im plemented their obligations, and on the other, the problems 
encountered in fulfilling their own commitments beca use of the imbalance in the Agreements.  The 
special and differential treatment provisions were ne ither precise, effective nor operative, nor for the 
most part were they binding and as a result they were virtually of little practical use.    TN/C/M/30 
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  145. He noted that all governments acknowledged the role that trade could play in alleviating 
poverty, in growth and in development.  Neverthe less, the conduct of industrialized countries in the 
WTO and in other fora discredited this discourse.  There were plenty of examples - there were commitments in the WTO's Doha Development Age nda, in WIPO's Developm ent Agenda, there were 
commitments in official development aid, those on assistance in achieving the Millennium 
Development Goals.  In dozens of declarations or action plans adopted, even at summit level, there 
was a commitment to development.  But when the tim e came to turn rhetoric into reality, all was 
evasion and became a real chimera.   
146. He said that the world's largest economy, whic h aimed to double its exports in five years, 
declared itself to be the main defender of free trade.  It defended free trade if the regulatory 
frameworks served its interests.  For 50 years, th e GATT rules had worked for this power, which had 
emerged the victor and with its ec onomy intact after the Second World Wa r.  At that time, Europe had 
been laid waste, Latin America was preoccupied with  its own concerns and the vast majority of those 
which were now Members of the WTO were still co lonies.  Opening up markets was the best option 
for producing the goods to fill the stores, in th e then booming economy of the United States.   
147. Today, with the situation more complex because of the pressure of emerging economies and 
the increasing difficulty of achieving hegemonic dom ination of markets, the Superpower, and those 
which had developed rapidly with its aid, polarizi ng the world still further into the rich and the poor, 
turned to a different strategy.  This strategy , however, had the same objective of obtaining the 
absolute advantages that had benefited it for half a century.   
148. He noted that technical standards, environm ental and safety measures, labour requirements 
were some of the examples of a new generation of  barriers to trade, new guarantees to continue 
excluding developing countries from global trade, new barriers that prevented newcomers from being able to compete in the markets of the industrialized North.  In addition, negotiations were increasingly 
taking place outside multilateral frameworks.  For example, in the case of intellectual property, an agreement negotiated secretly was close to approval and it went far beyond the provisions of the 
TRIPS Agreement.   
149. He concluded by saying that the stocktaking w eek could have concluded with much clearer 
ideas of the differences separating Members on the cu rrent agenda.  It could even have provided a 
clearer picture of what could be done to bring positi ons closer together.  However, if the leaders of 
developed economies did not change their already d eclared intention to introduce a series of new 
barriers to trade, and if they did not ensure that  the least developed countries were given the same 
political opportunities that they had enjoyed during  their development stages, the setback in this 
Organization would not exclude the Doha Round.   
150. The representative of Singapore
 said the TNC Chair and the Negotiating Group Chairs' 
reports were excellent summaries of progress achieved thus far, and of the remaining gaps.  She noted 
that for several years, Members' collective dete rmination to conclude the negotiations as soon as 
possible had been heard, at the highest political le vels and within the WTO.  Since September 2009, 
efforts had been made to accelerat e the process through regular Senior Officials Meetings in Geneva.  
She stressed that at the end of the stocktaking ex ercise, clarity and honesty was needed and added that 
political exhortations and technical work had no t yielded the desired level of progress.   
151. Despite this, it was clear that Members were committed to continuing the work as no one had 
suggested that the plug should be pulled.  Looki ng forward to the coming months, Singapore believed 
that there was  no choice but to continue the ha rd work on the negotiations - although it would be 
difficult.  She cautioned against questions being ra ised on the end game, and whether all Members at 
the negotiating table were equally committed to a balanced, successful and expedient outcome.  She 
stressed that Members needed to continue plugging away.   TN/C/M/30 
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  152. Singapore recognized that at times it might not be  entirely constructive to create timelines or 
work plans and roadmaps, only to ultimately artific ially raise expectations and miss deadlines.  But 
that did not mean that work should continue without  some interim goals.  In this regard, she expressed 
support for the Chair's proposals on the road ahead.  She added that while negotiations needed to 
continue on the remaining technical gaps in the various Negotiating Groups, like in 2008, Members 
needed to start looking at the linkages across them and to see what and where the trade-offs would be 
when arriving at the finishing line.  She said that  the question of "when" was still unknown, but at 
least, the contours of what the Doha Round woul d bring for all Members would be clearer.   
153. Singapore believed that by working vertically, horizontally and diagonally, Members could 
work towards closing all remaining technical gaps, and emerge with the remaining distilled political 
issues.  She noted that there was already some idea about what these might be, and that they might not 
be far off.  She also added that instead of talk of  "topping up", the focus needed to be on where the 
flexibilities lay.   
154. She pointed out that there was no hiding from the fact that Members had faced challenging 
times.  But, precisely at these times that it was necessa ry to understand that there was a larger goal at 
stake than individual interests in each negotia ting area.  Singapore hoped that without time-lines, 
without the comfort of Senior Officials' meeti ng, and without further unm et exhortations, Members 
would reflect on the over-riding importance of concluding these negotiations to maintain the 
credibility of the multilateral trading system and the WTO.  She said that although there would not be any starting over, perhaps it was time to start afresh  with a renewed view and reminder of what was at 
stake.   
155. The representative of Peru
 reiterated Peru's commitment to an early conclusion of the 
negotiations and stated that although the conclusion  might not be possible this year, the widespread 
determination to preserve what had been achieve d and a firm commitment towards a conclusion was 
encouraging.  She urged Members that sight should  not be lost of the essential contribution which the 
Round could make to growth in trade and economic a nd social well being in all countries, particularly 
the developing countries.   
156. Peru believed that what was on the table repr esented fundamental elements for the package 
which needed to be finished in the months to come .  She added that the package should help liberalize 
trade and make the international system more stable , through disciplines intended to:  (i) restrict the 
use of protectionist measures;  (ii) prohibit agricu ltural subsidies for exports and fisheries subsidies 
which promote surplus capacity and over-fishing;  (iii) drastically reduce domestic agricultural 
support in developed countries;  (iv) start to rec ognize and to protect in a practical and concrete way 
the rights of those age-old communities that had a pplied and continued to apply traditional knowledge 
linked to genetic resources in order to produce good s of use to human beings;  (v) achieve greater 
commitments in services, especially in Mode 4and;   (vi) contribute to Trade Facilitation.   
157. Peru noted that this did not mean that what w as on the table was sufficient.  On the contrary, 
she added that Peru aimed at achieving far-reaching and ambitious reforms in the international trade 
regime so as to allow greater security, transparency and predictability.  She proposed that future work 
should focus on the substance of the negotiations ba sed on the Negotiating Group Chairs' reports.   
158. She stated that the negotiating formats should be those best adapted to each issue in question, 
keeping in mind that the agreements reached were multilateral.  She noted that the issues should be 
considered on their own merits vertically and in th e light of current challenges and that they must lay 
special emphasis on horizontal approaches that made a package with a high level of ambition both 
possible and more attractive - there were no insol uble differences.  Issues that appeared to be 
impossible to resolve throughout the long hist ory of the GATT and the WTO illustrated that  TN/C/M/30 
 Page 23 
 
 
  objectives could be achieved with hard technical work and strong political will.  She encouraged 
Members to show the same determination in these negotiations.   
159. She concluded by saying that Peru was a sma ll country open to trade and investment and 
deeply committed to the multilateral system.  Peru  supported the Chairman's proposed process, and 
added that Members could bridge some of the ga ps or differences that had been identified.   
160. The representative of China  associated her delegation with the statements made by G-20, 
G-33 as well as other developing country groups.   
161. Furthermore, China supported the basic principl es highlighted by the TNC Chair as providing 
guidance for Members and having helped to move into  the next stage of the negotiations and ensuring 
that the journey towards concluding the Round stayed on the right course and delivered the 
development mandate of the Round.  China expressed  its strong support to the requests made by 
LDCs, SVEs, the ACP Group, and the Cotton 4 and high lighted that it would work with others to see 
that the legitimate needs of these count ries were met as early as possible.   
162. She said that although China was concerned a bout the lack of political momentum, it was 
pleased with the strong commitment  to the centrality of the multilateral process, as this would lock in 
the progress made so far and deal with the remain ing unresolved issues based on the Chairs' texts to 
avoid backtracking and unravelling of the consen sus reached.  Finally, China reiterated its 
commitment to working with others to ensure that  the outcome of the negotia tions was balanced, fair 
and beneficial to all.   
163. The representative of Turkey  believed that the stocktaking had been a useful exercise in the 
right direction.  He expressed support for the Chai rman's approach on the way ahead.  He highlighted 
that the main reason for not having concluded the Round was a lack of political will.  Turkey urged 
Members to continue until  the negotiations had r eached a certain level of maturity where all actors 
were engaged with the same level of enthusiasm.  He advised that deadlines or ambitious initiatives or 
undertakings that would put the system under pressure  should be avoided.  The WTO system at this 
moment did not have to go through a "stress test", and it seemed that the issues had not yet reached 
the required level of maturity for a ministerial m eeting.  He advocated that technical work should 
continue in the negotiating groups since gaps needed  to be narrowed and progress made so far needed 
to be maintained.   
164. His delegation believed there were issues which needed to be advanced and which needed 
political engagement.  While there had been a numb er of open issues in various negotiating areas, a 
balance needed to be established among various issues  without singling anything out.  He stressed that 
transparency and participation were the two compone nts of inclusiveness.  Reporting on meetings in 
various formats was not sufficient.  Participa tion was necessary and de legations should not be 
deprived of their right to negotiate.  Turkey under scored that there was no substitute for a successfully 
concluded Round and this could only be achieved through patience and perseverance and continued 
efforts with the painstaking multilateral negotiations.   
165. The representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela  associated his delegation with the 
statement of Brazil on behalf of the G-20.  He said that all Members valued the tenacity, efforts and 
constant determination of the TNC Chair to m ove the Round forward despite the difficult economic 
and political circumstances in the world.  He noted that everybody also reco gnized that there were 
some limitations of this Organization and the limitations in its Membership.   
166. He said that the meeting had provided a type  of road map with respect to areas where 
Members needed to achieve balance.  His delegati on believed that the Chair's frequent references to 
multilateralism, dialogue, development and horizontal consultations represented a recognition of such TN/C/M/30 
Page 24  
 
  practices which many developing countries had been  requesting for some time.  He expressed the 
hope that these changes would continue in the future  and not simply a temporary by-product of the 
difficult economic circumstances expe rienced by this institution.   
167. He said that the stocktaking exercise had presen ted a plan which lacked critical vision in 
terms of reviewing what had happened since 2008 a nd up to 2010, including the decisions taken over 
that period.  He said that it had been a mistak e to characterize the crisis with unmeasured optimism 
and look at it with an ego-centrical vision in the WTO.   
168. He said that the optimism had been based on the notion that the crisis was simply provisional, 
that the Round could solve the crisis and that the Round was the antidote to the crisis.  In  terms of the 
ego-centrical vision the membership had for some time believed that the world was looking towards 
the Doha Round and the WTO.  But after the crisis this was no longer a priority for the economic 
world and the best proof of this is that coverage  of the Round in the media has almost disappeared.  
The membership had over-valued in an egocentric and optimistic fashion the formal, generous and 
well-intentioned appeals to conclude the Round from such events as the G-8, Davos and the G-20.  
The optimism made the membership  see green shoots in the world ec onomy overall, even when world 
trade decreased by an average of 12 per cent d ecreased, including more than 20 per cent in some 
developing countries.   
169. He argued that when faced with unsolvable st ructural problems in the world economy, such 
problems were transformed.  In the case of the fi nancial crisis the soluti on which had been provided 
had transformed the crisis into a real economic crisis and as a result of that the world was now 
experiencing an employment crisis.  He added that this crisis was now jeopa rdizing stability through a 
debt crisis caused by the countries who had abused the most the protectionist subsidies and 
euphemistically named stimulus packages.  He wo ndered whether world political leaders would be 
interested in prioritizing and encouraging the Doha  Round with its level of uncertainty or whether 
they would focus their efforts on solving the debt crisis which is jeopardizing and threatening the 
stability and value of currencies.   
170. In the light of these circumstances, Members now had frustration, pessimism and uncertainty 
looming over them.  This had been caused by th e unfruitful activities in 2009 and because of the 
unpromising prospects for 2010.   
171. His delegation believed it was to think and cast away the optimism which was hiding reality.  
It was time to forget that the Round would resolve th e crisis and that it had solutions for everybody.  
He said that the Round could convert and transfor m developing countries into developed countries 
and ensure developed countries their level eternally.   
172. Members needed to reflect critically on what th ey had done.  He said that the current crisis 
not only affected the Millennium Development Goals, but also had a significant negative impact on international trade and on the credibility of the WT O which had constantly foreseen the conclusion of 
the Round, but without success.  He said that some  press analysts, who constantly appeared in the 
Press Review and in many other magazines focusi ng on economic and trade activities, compared the 
WTO to the Disarmament C onference.  It was often stated that the Round was languishing, that it was 
dead, or that it was a zombie which occasionally rose.   
173. He cautioned that the current crisis had inju red the WTO and left the Round wounded.  His 
delegation was not optimistic with respect to the future of the Round as it was difficult to envisage 
any type of substantive headway being made.  Th e current situation was not down to a technical 
problem, it was down to a political problem.  He expressed scepticism about the outcome of the 
Chair's suggested plan although presented with the best intentions.  In his view, it was time to focus   TN/C/M/30 
 Page 25 
 
 
  on solving the outstanding political issues which in turn would allow the technical aspects to make 
progress.   
174. He believed that the work plan presented to the membership was more of the same and that it 
would not move Members out of the stalemate.  It had been said, and his delegation agreed, that that 
there was a lack of political decisions.  He asked whether such decisions would be achieved with the 
work plan and what else could be done to arrive at such political decisions.  He believed that real 
sincerity was absent and that Members were not courageous enough to speak out and say the truth which would lead to analysis and accurate conclusions.   
175. The representative of Chinese Taipei
, speaking on behalf of RAMS , said this group agreed 
with the Chair's assessment that this stocktaki ng would be closely watched by a broader world 
community.  He added that the signal sent should be that Members remain ed strongly committed to 
concluding the Round as soon as possible.   
176. He said that a swift, substantial and balan ced conclusion to the Doha Round would make a 
significant contribution to the recovery and subse quent growth of the global economy, and establish a 
more sustainable, development-oriented internati onal trading regime.  The completion of the Round 
would strengthen the rules-based multilateral trading system, and open up new opportunities for all 
Members.  It was the view of the RAMs Group to continue engagement in the DDA negotiations 
process as the costs and uncertainty resulting from a failure to engage were unimaginable.   
177. On the way forward, he highlighted that the RAMs Group agreed that Members should 
continue at bilateral, plurilateral and multilatera l levels, bearing in mind the principles of full 
participation, inclusiveness and transparency.  He  said that the multilateral process had to be the 
driving force of the DDA negotiations.   
178. He acknowledged the achievements made in the last  three years, but pointed out that for many 
of the outstanding substantive issues, clarity was not  yet there, solutions had not been found and gaps 
still remained.  The texts of 2008 were the result of much hard work in the past and significant 
progress had been made.  He stated that the good work done should be preserved and the 
December 2008 texts should be used as the basi s for moving forward.  He warned against 
backtracking, lowering of ambition or re-opening of some issues that had been stabilized.   
179. On the format for the negotiations, he suggested  broadening participation to include more of 
the key players in global trade.  In this regard , the RAMs Group was willing to participate in the 
process.  He concluded by saying that the substan tial contributions already made by the RAMs during 
their accession process should be taken into account a nd appropriate special treatment pursuant to the 
mandate of Paragraph 58 of the Hong Kong Mini sterial Declaration should be given.   
180. The representative of Kenya , associated his delegation with the statements made by Mauritius 
and Gabon on behalf of the ACP and the African Group respectively.  He said that a delayed conclusion of DDA was "delayed development" as m illions of people globally remained trapped in 
the poverty web which could only be removed through trade.   
181. He emphasized that development must remain at the core of any outcome of a successful 
DDA.  The remaining development-related gaps n eeded to be appropriately addressed without any 
linkage and dimension of selectivity to the issues.   He highlighted that as an outcome of the 
stocktaking exercise, Kenya expected a clear strate gy for stabilizing and integrating all issues that had 
achieved substantial progress in the Revised Draft Modalities Texts, which should remain the basis 
for any further work.  He added that the identified ga ps were still raw and at an early stage as they 
were still too large and far apart.  Kenya saw an urgent need for intensified work in bridging and TN/C/M/30 
Page 26  
 
  narrowing their sizes and ensuring that they had matured before passing them on to Ministers.  He 
noted that this entailed putting in place a well struct ured Chair-led consultative process in Geneva.   
182.   His delegation recognized the various format s of  consultations for purposes of improving 
clarity of issues, but added that these formats had to conform to and suppor t the multilateral process 
based on the principles of full participation, inclusiv eness and transparency.  Finally, he reiterated that 
the horizontal approach to issues should not override the sequencing that had been agreed upon in 
Hong Kong.   
183. The representative of Ecuador
 supported the statements made by Brazil on behalf of the G-20 
and by Chinese Taipei on behalf of the Group of Recently Acceded Members (RAMs).   
184. He said that his delegation had taken note of the views of various Members concerning the 
further process and recommendations.  He emph asized that any future discussion process or 
agreement should not be limited to  small groups which were not representative.  The process should 
be inclusive and transparent and should respect the principles of special and differential treatment and 
less-than-full reciprocity, while ensuring that the con cept of development remained at the heart of the 
negotiations.  Ecuador supported a constructive process and cautioned against any backtracking on the 
mandates and texts which had been achieved to date , even if those mandates and texts continued to 
lack a clear vision of development, particularly in  agriculture where those primarily responsible for 
trade distortion should contribute much more.   
185. He believed that the statements in favour of concluding the Round needed to be translated 
into real commitment, beyond mere rhetoric whic h had become the norm at every meeting attended 
by Ministers.  This concept had become worn out a nd had lost all credibility.  He stressed that any 
ministerial statement - which clearly had to be multil ateralized to be fully legitimate - should support 
the technical work and political cooperation that need ed to take place simultaneously.  This could not 
mean that in order to accommodate the interests of  any developed Member, ot hers had to abandon the 
ambition for development in the Round.  He said that  the membership had seen an example of this in 
July 2008 when a deplorable figure had been circ ulated with regard to overall trade-distorting 
domestic support (OTDS).   
186. His delegation considered that the membership  needed to analyse the reasons behind the 
desire of certain Members to maintain the stat us quo given that this would conveniently mean 
retaining their subsidies, exorbitant tariffs, thei r use and abuse of trade defence measures and other 
distorting practices which perpetuated completely asymmetrical conditions of competition in world trade and put countries such as his at a direct disadvantage. 
187. He concluded by saying that Members needed to continue their support of the work of the 
Chairs of the negotiating groups based on the current situation, even if this did not necessarily reflect 
the views of the entire membership on pending or cl osed issues.  Developing countries needed to 
overcome their limited differences while keeping in mind that disagreements as difficult as the banana 
issue, tropical products and the erosion of prefer ences had been overcome and should set an example 
of cooperation which demonstrated a clear commitm ent in favour of their common interests.   
188. The representative of the United States
, acknowledged that a full range of approaches were 
required in order to make progress – in particular t hose that involved direct engagement on issues that 
divided Members.  His delegation agreed that the focus should be on engagement, rather than events 
and deadlines and transparency  should be maintained as a critical element.   
189. It had been apparent during the stocktaking exercise that there was a shared resolve.  
However, this resolve must be tr anslated into a willingness to directly engage and negotiate toward 
closing gaps, particularly among key players.  In this regard, an important aspect of the overall  TN/C/M/30 
 Page 27 
 
 
  challenge would be to ensure that Members were headed towards a Doha outcome that would include 
responsibilities that aligned with the realties of ongoing roles in the current global economy.  His 
delegation remained committed to join ing all others in the sustained effort that was required to put the 
Doha negotiations on a path to success.   
190. The representative of Korea  said the TNC Chair and Negotiating Group Chairs' reports 
accurately reflected the current state-of-play, id entified the gaps and provided guidance on the way 
forward.  He noted that although progress had b een modest throughout all negotiating areas, it was 
incremental.  Wide gaps still remained in key ar eas, the pace was slow and a gap in the level of 
ambition also existed, as indicated in the NAMA nego tiating group Chair report.  He believed that this 
was the first gateway issue that needed to be opened.   
191. His delegation was encouraged by the ov erall consensus on negotiations through, inter-alia , a 
Chair-led process.  This consensus would sustain Members' commitment in saving the credibility of 
DDA negotiations.  He cautioned against the unravelli ng of the progress made so  far and added that 
what was on the table provided the basis for futu re work.  His delegation hoped that the upcoming 
negotiations would focus on more substance-orient ed and horizontal discussions on key areas that had 
not yet been tackled in a serious way.   
192. He recognized the usefulness of bilateral or  other avenues to narrow down the remaining 
gaps.  These processes should contribute to the negot iations, although, the primacy of the multilateral 
process should prevail.  His delegation was also w illing to consider any other process as long as 
transparency and inclusiveness were respected.  He emphasized that the Member-driven process 
should remain central to multilateral negotiations.   
193. He concluded by saying that over the past eight or  nine years, considerable time and resources 
had been spent on the DDA.  But no other year had been more crucial than 2010 with regard to the 
destiny of DDA negotiations.  He reminded delega tions that Korea, would be hosting the G-20 
Summit in November 2010, and remained committed to  a successful and early conclusion of DDA 
negotiations.   
194. The representative of Hong Kong, China  said that it  was to make a sober assessment of what 
could be done at the present juncture , while the political energy required to finish the last stretch of 
the race was still insufficien t in some quarters.   
195. Hong Kong, China supported the process for taki ng the negotiations forward as outlined in 
Chair's report and recognized that the Negotia ting Group Chairs' reports had highlighted the 
incremental progress achieved, since July 2008.  He  urged Members to keep the momentum going and 
pointed out that the Geneva-based negotiations pr ocess, centred around Chair-led Negotiating Groups, 
should drive the process forward.  He supported th e use of bilaterals and plurilaterals and the 
complementary role they played to the multilatera l process.  Adherence to the principle of full 
transparency should be ensured.  Past experience had showen that this was an area that needed further 
improvement.  His delegation believed that  the TNC should act as a hub to promote 
information-sharing and ensure transparency on a regular basis.   
196. He underscored the importance of preserving what had been agreed so far and working 
towards the narrowing of gaps on the outstanding issues.  Some issues were highly politically charged and their resolution required Ministerial-level decisi ons.  But not all the remaining gaps fell into that 
category.  And it was up to the negotiators to minimize the size of these gaps to such an extent that the 
political leaders could eventually step in to concl ude matters.  In the absence  of the necessary political 
will, Members would have to try to fill them by making incremental progress.   TN/C/M/30 
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  197. His delegation believed that although dramatic headway had not been made, the Doha Round 
was very much alive and with perseverance and determination, the Round could and would be 
concluded.   
198. The representative of Honduras
 highlighted that the conclusion of the Round would have a 
direct impact on international trade, economic r ecovery and poverty alle viation in developing 
countries.  He stressed that the development di mension must occupy a leading place in the Round, 
taking into account the trade needs of developing countries, especially of the smallest and most vulnerable.   
199. His delegation considered that the outcome of the stocktaking meeting should be based on the 
progress achieved to date, especially on those issues wh ich had been set down in the negotiating texts.  
For example, the treatment to be given to small and vulnerable economies in  the areas of agricultural 
and non-agricultural products, should provide the b asis for continued negotiations on modalities.   
200. Regarding Services negotiations, he said that the Chair's report of July 2008 gave appropriate 
guidance for continuing work.  On Trade Facilitation,  he viewed positively the results reflected in the 
consolidated text.  Nevertheless, work should con tinue in order to ensure that the special and 
differential treatment pillar reached the same level as the rest of the text.   
201. As a small and vulnerable economy, Honduras'  positions aimed at ensuring additional 
flexibility on issues such as the new special safegua rd mechanism in agriculture, as well as fisheries 
subsidies.  Considerable progress had been made in the various negotiated areas and future efforts 
should be directed at building on these achieveme nts and identifying the process that would allow 
Members to move ahead without any backtracking.   
202. Honduras believed that the negotiating process fo r bridging the gaps identified in the 
stocktaking exercise should be at the horizontal level, transparent and inclusive.  Technical work should be pursued by the Chairs of the Negotiating Groups, guided by Members.  Once the technical work in Geneva had been completed, the political  will of WTO's leading Members would be required 
to conclude the negotiating process.  He reiterate d his country's commitment to ensure a positive, 
balanced and development-orient ed outcome of the Round.    
203. The representative of Colombia
 stated that the outcome of the stocktaking meeting should 
have resulted in more tangible progress in the negotiations.  His delegation believed that it was 
unlikely that the Doha Round would be concl uded in 2010 and urged Members to assume their 
responsibilities.  However, he added that the exercise had moved the discussion forward.   
204. He noted that the stocktaking exercise had en abled Members to arrive at the following key 
conclusions:  (i) Members had collectively expressed their interest in concluding the Round;  (ii) 
focus needed to be on how the gaps should be bridge d;  (iii) there was a clearer picture of thematic 
issues that had reached a higher degree of maturity and required further technical work;  (iv) the 
political circumstances, especially in some of the largest Members of the WTO, were not favourable 
to prompt a conclusion of the negotiations and;  (v) the vertical approach to the issues had not yielded 
sufficient and concrete results, therefore, a new appr oach involving an integral vision was required.   
205. He said that work should continue with dedica tion and persistence to avoid past mistakes.  
Work should be focused on the overall vision, not is sue by issue separately but seeking to build up a 
balanced package so that consensus could be r eached.  The work should be carried out in the 
negotiating groups, in bilateral and plurilateral fora and in the TNC.  His delegation believed that it 
was the task of the TNC Chair to ensure that c onsistency and transparency were maintained.    TN/C/M/30 
 Page 29 
 
 
  206. He advocated that Geneva should remain the cen tre of the negotiations, led by Ambassadors, 
and backed by political bodies and particularly Senior  Officials.  He added that it was  important to 
work on the substance and the fee ling of urgency needed to be maintained.  He believed that 
interaction of Ministers in the various fora, i.e.  Cairns Group, OECD, APEC, G-20, was useful and 
necessary.  In conclusion, he emphasized that wh at was on the table must be preserved, without 
backtracking.   
207. The representative of Philippines , associated his delegation with the statements made by 
ASEAN and other alliance coordinators.  On agricult ure, he noted that while gaps remained on the 
outstanding issues under domestic support and mark et access, continued technical and political 
engagement could lead to solutions that would de liver on the development mandate of Doha.  This 
would include an operable, accessible and effective price and volume-SSM that also allowed trade to 
grow.   
208. On NAMA, the Philippines attached  importance to non-tariff barriers.  He noted that the time 
and energy spent so far had enabled Members to pr oceed with text-based negotiations on some of the 
proposals currently under intensive work.  A conc rete outcome on NTBs would make a significant 
contribution to the conclusion of the Doha Round an d the Philippines remained ready to engage.   
209. The representative of Pakistan , stated that there was a lot of  work ahead and only sustained 
engagement coupled with the necessary political w ill would lead to a successful completion of the 
Round.  The appetite to conclude the Round had been  regained through the stocktaking exercise.  A 
successful Doha with its development outcome could help millions through food security and the 
alleviation of poverty.   
210. His delegation believed that changing the rules of the game during the game would not be 
justifiable nor fair.  He highlighted the following key points on the way forward:  (i) successful and 
equitable conclusion of the Round;  (ii) the outcome must deliver on the develo pment dimension;  (iii) 
the hard work done over the last eight years deserve d to be respected and maintained;  (iv) individual 
contribution was for a collective gain;  (v) disrupting the process should be avoided and;  (vi) 
Members should remain engaged.   
211. On "how" to move forward, he noted the follo wing:  (i) the Chairs had done tremendous work 
in identifying the issues that required further work .  These issues should be a key focus for Geneva 
based delegations, facilitated by the respective Nego tiating Group Chairs;  (ii) the TNC Chair should 
complement the work by holding consultations on a bilateral and plurilateral basis to create ownership 
and consensus, keeping Members info rmed for transparency purposes;  ( iii) so far, the focus had been 
on Agriculture and NAMA.  Efforts were needed on other areas of the DDA where negotiations were 
at the initial stages.  He noted that attention was also required on issues which constituted ongoing 
activities of the WTO and;  (iv) once the Gene va process had matured and the gaps had been 
identified, then political level engagement was required.   
212. The representative of Costa Rica  recalled that his country had recently celebrated its 
20th anniversary of its accession to the multila teral trading system, in which the WTO 
Director-General had participated.  Costa Rica's  integration into the international economy had 
represented an important step towards trade liberaliz ation, a process that had significantly contributed 
to its development.  He recalled the comments of hi s President Oscar Arias, during these celebrations.   
213. President Arias had said that "  With all its mistakes and weaknesses, free trade has been the 
most powerful development tool available to hum ankind in recent times, particularly for the poorest 
countries of the world ", and he recalled that the pursuit of peace in Central America, two decades 
ago, went hand in hand with the opening up of trade.   TN/C/M/30 
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  214. He quoted the President's words:  " We were convinced that free trade would be the most 
expeditious way of enhancing the growth of our ec onomy and improving the standard of living of our 
citizens.  We knew that peace would not be su stainable if there was a persistence of hunger in the 
region.  We also knew that development would be  impossible if there was a p ersistence of war.  We 
needed peace in order to guarantee economic growth , and we needed economic growth in order to 
guarantee peace.  I firmly believe that peace and friendship between peoples are better served by 
every container that is unloaded at a port, by every international flight that lands at a terminal, by every foreign investor who sets up a business in a new lo cation, than by all the greetings and speeches 
that are proffered in international diplomacy ." 
215. He said that these words reflected the impor tance that Costa Rica attached to trade 
liberalization as a development tool.   
216. The representative of Nigeria
 associated his delegation with the statements made by Gabon, 
on behalf of the African Group, Maur itius on behalf of the ACP, and Brazil on behalf of the G-20.  He 
stated that the stocktaking exer cise had been timely and useful, particularly in the midst of the 
growing anxiety and uncertainty that surrounded the fate of the DDA.   
217. He said that the development mandate of the Doha Round should not be compromised.  Issues 
of concern to developing countries generally, incl uding LDCs, SVEs and the African Group should be 
accorded the highest priority.  Urgent and si gnificant progress on Cotton was needed, given the 
decision in Hong Kong.  It was his delegation's position that there would be no Doha Round outcome, 
unless Member's delivered on Cotton.  In addition, special and differential treatment remained the 
cornerstone of the WTO architecture and it should be respected in concrete te rms.  He stated that 
Agriculture held the key in the negotiations and it would impact ot her areas of the negotiations.   
218. On process, he noted that the centrality of th e multilateral process should be maintained and 
full transparency had to be ensured.  Ministeria l engagement was necessary and should be contingent 
on significant progress being made in the negotiations.   
219. The Chairman  thanked all the delegations for their inputs.  He noted that all the comments 
taken together confirmed that the assessment of wh ere the negotiations were and suggestions for the 
next steps were reasonably accurate.  He would no w be consulting with the Chair of the General 
Council, the Negotiating Groups Chairs, Groups a nd individual Members.  The principle of 
transparency would be kept in mind.  He was conf ident that the necessary will was there in order to 
work hard and tackle the constraints.   
220. The Trade Negotiations Committee took note  of the Chair's reports and of the statements by 
delegations.1 
                                                      
1 Including the statement reflected in Annex 1.    TN/C/M/30 
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ANNEX I 
 
Statement submitted by Tanzania 
for inclusion in the record of the meeting 
 
  At its request, the statement submitted by Tanzan ia for inclusion in the minutes of the formal 
meeting of the TNC held on 26 March is reproduced below.    
_______________ 
 
 
1. Thank you for your detailed briefing on the consultations you made after the last TNC 
meeting, with various Members in a range of form ats and configurations including yesterday's Green 
Room with the view to address the gaps remaini ng in the DDA negotiations.  Before I make my 
specific comments I wish to indicate my delegation's support to statements made thus far by Brazil on 
behalf of the G-20, Zambia (LDCs), Ma uritius (ACP Group) and Gabon (African Group)  
2. I wish to begin my intervention by reminding ourselves of the principle of pecial and 
differential treatment (S & DT) to which all th e WTO membership had approved since the Uruguay 
Round.  The S & DT principle is intended to address imbalances between Members of the WTO 
taking account of the fact that countries at different stages of growth and development should not 
assume the same level of responsibilities in in ternational agreements because they are unequal 
partners.  Even though towards the end of the Round the concept was narrowed it was still 
emphasized that developing countries may be exem pted from implementing some measures as well as 
allowed different time scales.  The DDA is a con tinuation of the newly-launched and continuing 
negotiations on implementation and other issues arising from the Uruguay Round.  It links poverty 
reduction and economic development and attempts to  be development friendly by putting emphasis to 
S & DT.  Thus in Doha, developing countries asked  for effective S & DT implementation by fully 
integrating it into the architecture of the WTO.  However, there has been little progress on this central 
issue to date.   
3. The development dimension of the DDA aims to achieve the following interlinked broad 
objectives:  (i) Meaningful integration of devel oping countries in the global economy, including in 
trade;  (ii) Supporting and enabling developing countr ies, and LDCs in particular to achieve growth 
and sustainable development.   
4. For LDCs these objectives are expected to be realized through various ways such as 
exemptions from strict compliance of obligations a nd commitments;  services waivers;  greater market 
access through the operationalization of DFQF;  provision of AfT, EIF and Technical Assistance and 
Capacity Building;  removal of trade distorting s ubsidies, NTBs;  and to allow developing countries, 
including LDCs, the use of the development-centr ed Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) to address 
specific issues like import surges to deal w ith food security and rural livelihoods.   
5. In light of the foregoing, LDCs have time a nd again called and will still continue to press for 
an early harvest in DFQF market access, services waiver and the Cotton issue.  The Cotton issue is 
still bedeviled with trade distorting subsidies to farm ers in some developed economies.  If this is not 
concluded in a timely manner, Cotton farmers in A frica will continue to remain in deep trouble.  
Technical assistance provided by developed countries  cannot be a substitute.  Operationalization of 
DFQF market access is still being resisted on the pretex t of the single undertaking principle.  This is a 
contradiction which should not be a llowed to persist.  Transparency and simplification of Rules of 
Origin remain unresolved.  The services waiver for the LDCs which was deliberated for one year in a TN/C/M/30 
Page 32  
 
  small group under Norway's leadership and later ava iled to the Enchilada and finally opened to the 
entire membership needs to be concluded soon.  The issue of accessions of new members to the WTO 
from developing countries and LDCs in pa rticular needs further expediting.   
6. In conclusion, I wish to underscore the fact  that the continued impasse is causing untold 
frustrations to negotiators in the developing wo rld as we do not know where we are heading.  
Development opportunities are lost that could enable  us effectively and meaningfully participate in 
global trade.  Attainment of the Millenium De velopment Goals (MDGs) and eradication of poverty 
are becoming increasingly difficult by the day.   
  
__________