. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/MIN(09)/ST/69 
2 December 2009 
 (09-6163) 
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
Seventh Session Geneva, 30 November - 2 December 2009 Original:   English 
 
  
ICELAND 
 
Statement by HE Mr Kristinn F. Árnason
 
Permanent Representative of Iceland in Geneva  
   At the outset, let me express our appreciation to  the Government of Switzerland and the City 
of Geneva for hosting this Sevent h Session of the WTO Ministerial Conference.  We would also like 
to thank the Chairman of the General Council, the Director-General, and all his staff at the WTO for 
their hard work in preparing this meeting.   This Ministerial Conference is being held ag ainst the backdrop of one of the worst economic 
crises in modern history.  Many WTO Members have  been severely hit by this crisis and are still 
battling the consequences.  This includes my count ry, Iceland, which experienced the collapse of 
almost its entire financial system one year ago. 
  In the last few months the Icelandic Governme nt has been working with quiet determination 
to introduce the necessary reforms wh ich will enable Iceland to recover.   In fact, Iceland has already 
made substantial progress as reflected in the IM F's first review of the economic stabilization 
programme from last October.  Today, we are s eeing some positive signs of economic recovery in 
Europe and around the world, which is indeed good ne ws for all of us.  We all need our trading 
partners in good economic hea lth to recover more quickly. 
  Last July marked an historic occasion when I celand applied for membership of the European 
Union.  Iceland shares with Europe a common her itage and common history and is an active and long-
standing partner in the wider Europ ean integration process as a member of EU's internal market and 
Schengen.  We are optimistic that accession talks can commence in early 2010, giving the Icelandic 
people the right to vote on an EU Accession Treaty in 2012 or 2013.   Next year will be crucial in the history of  the WTO and the multilateral trading system.  
Further lack of substantial progress in the Doha Ro und can result in loss of momentum.  This could 
lead to increased protectionism and decreased respect  for broad-based international trade rules.  It 
would be an alarming prospect, keeping in mind that  one of the reasons for the economic crisis was 
the general lack of respect for rules.  
 Iceland remains strongly committed to a successf ul and swift conclusion of the Round in all 
areas of the single undertaking.  Iceland remains committed to a strong multilateral trading system 
and to open markets, as two important tool s to help overcome the world economic crisis. 
  Furthermore, Iceland is willing to continue  to work on the basis of the December 2008 
modalities text.  As other G-10 countries we ap preciate the progress made in the agriculture 
negotiations but express our concern about the lack of  substantial progress in many of the other areas. 
 WT/MIN(09)/ST/69 
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   In this context, we would like to direct your  attention to a recent policy research working 
paper of the World Bank, titled "Concl ude Doha.  It matters!" The conclusions of the paper are clear:  
completing the Doha Round will help the global economy to recover from the recession and reduce 
the probability of protectionism.  The paper also touches upon the subject of subsidies and overfishing 
and points out that benefits are to be gained fro m disciplining the use of subsidies that encourage 
overfishing. 
  Iceland welcomes the World Bank's paper and agrees that it should be a top priority to conclude the Doha Round.  
 Lastly, our most important mission is to preserve and strengthen the multilateral trading 
system.  We can all benefit, to a certain extent, from bilateral agreements, but they can never replace 
multilateral rules.  We should also not forget that  the Doha Round is dedicated to development and 
further delays in concluding the Round are likely to  hit hardest the vulnerable countries.  We should 
remember that liberalised trade is  the cornerstone of development. 
 
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