WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/TE/W/66 
15 May 2006 
 (06-2365) 
Committee on Trade and Environment  
Special Session Original:   English 
 
 
CONTINUED WORK UNDER PARAGRAPH 31(II) OF THE DOHA DECLARATION 
 
Submission by the European Communities  
 
Paragraph 31(ii)  
 
 The following communication, dated 11 May 2006, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of the European Communities . 
 
_______________ 
  
I. INTRODUCTION 
1. Paragraph 31(ii) of the Doha Ministerial Declar ation (DMD) is an indispensable part of the 
trade and environment mandate.  WTO Members ha ve unanimously expressed their desire for 
relations between the multilateral trading system and Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) 
to be "mutually supportive" and "c onsistent with sustainable development goals".  The European 
Communities (EC) considers it natural, therefore,  for the Committee on Trade and Environment in 
Special Session (CTESS) to deliver a rapid and substa ntive outcome on this strand of the negotiations. 
2. At Doha, ministers mandated the CTESS to nego tiate on "procedures for regular information 
exchange between MEA secretariats and the rele vant WTO committees, and the criteria for the 
granting of observer status".  In our submissi on TN/TE/W/15 dated 17 Oct ober 2002, we set out our 
views on the issues, concluding, in the main, that  information exchange sessions become a formal, 
institutionalized feature of WTO work; and that 'c ore' MEAs be granted observer status in the 
Committee on Trade and Environment (CTE).  The EC wishes to reconfirm its views on these matters. 
3. This submission reaffirms all points made by the EC in its submission above, even where 
such points are not explicitly reiterated here. 
II. INFORMATION EXCHANGE BETWEEN MEA SECRETARIATS AND THE 
RELEVANT WTO COMMITTEES 
4. In respect of procedures for regular informa tion exchange between MEA secretariats and the 
relevant WTO committees, the EC believes no furthe r elaboration of its position to be necessary.  
In short, the EC proposes that information excha nge between MEA secretariats and the CTE become 
a formal, institutionalized aspect of the CTE meeting in normal session. 
5. Both the US and Switzerland, besides the EC, ha ve made suggestions concerning the practical 
organization of information exchange sessions.  The EC is of course more than willing to discuss 
these matters in detail.  But we would point out that it should not be necessary ex ante  to agree the TN/TE/W/66 
Page 2  
 
  detailed operational/administrative f unctions related to the running of information exchange sessions 
in order satisfactorily to fulfil the mandate. 
III. CRITERIA FOR THE GRANTING OF OBSERVER STATUS 
6. In respect of the granting of observer status, th e EC reconfirms its position that 'core' MEAs, 
namely those that have participated in the prev ious informal information exchange sessions, be 
granted observer status in the CTE.
1 
7. As regards requests by other MEAs for observer status in the CTE, or requests by UNEP and 
'core' and other MEAs for observer status in relevant WTO committees, there should be a strong 
presumption in favour of the granting of observer status, in accordance with the broad conditions 
listed at paragraph 8.  
8. The following conditions should inform deci sion-making on observer status for MEAs in 
WTO committees: 
(a) Decisions on the granting of observer status to MEAs in relevant WTO committees2 
should fall to the relevant committee;  
(b) Decision-making should be without prejudice to the procedures set out in Annex 3 of 
the Rules of procedure for Sessions of the Ministerial Conference and Meetings of the 
General Council (WT/L/161); 
(c) In respect of paragraph 4 of Annex 3 above , there should be a strong presumption that 
the requesting MEA (or UNEP, as the case may be) is indeed "associated with the 
work of the contracting parties to the GATT 1947", and is therefore eligible for receipt of observer status;  
(d) Observer status should be granted upon condition of full reciprocity. 
 
                                                     
 
1 The 'core' MEAs are listed as attendees to MEA information sessions in TN/TE/S/2 at paragraph 11:  
the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Moveme nts of Hazardous Wastes  and their Disposal 
(Basel Convention), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Convention for the Conservation of 
Atlantic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), the Conven tion on International Trade in Endangered Species of 
Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), 
the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests (IFF), the Inte rnational Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), the 
Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (Montreal Protocol), the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) Procedure for Certai n Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International 
Trade, the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), the United Nations Convention on 
the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the United Nations Fram ework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the 
United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement (UN Fish Stocks) and the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF).  
This would represent around 13 MEAs, the Cartagena and the Kyoto Protocols being respectively covered by 
the CBD and the UNFCCC.  All these MEAs do have a trade component, as  indicated in the "Matrix" elaborated 
by the WTO Secretariat (WT/CTE/W/160/Rev.1) and can be  considered to have a "c ompetence" and a "direct 
interest" in trade policy matters.  Of course, UNEP,  the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the 
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) and the United Nations Framework Convention on 
Climate Change (UNFCCC) have already been granted observer status in the CTE.   
2 The most relevant committees would include at  least bodies such as the TBT Committee, the 
SPS Committee, the Committee on Trade and Developmen t, the Council for TRIP S, or the Committee on 
Agriculture.    TN/TE/W/66 
 Page 3 
 
 
  9. These conditions should be deemed fulfilled  in respect of 'core' MEAs’ standing in the CTE. 
Hence our proposal at paragraph 6 that 'core' MEAs  be granted observer status in the CTE forthwith. 
10. As concerns the question of observer status in the CTE meeting in Special Session (CTESS), 
the EC proposes that UNEP and 'core' MEA secretariats be granted observer status for the duration of the negotiations.  As an interim measure , the EC proposes that they be granted ad hoc  observer status 
for a renewable period of one-year.  Such a deci sion could, and should, be taken without delay. 
IV. CONCLUSIONS 
11. To conclude, the EC reiterates its desire for a substantive outcome to the Paragraph 31(ii) 
negotiations on the basis of the following proposals: 
(a) Information exchange sessions between MEA secretariats and the relevant WTO 
committees be formalized/institutionalized; 
(b) Residual 'core' MEAs be granted observer st atus in the CTE forthwith; requests from 
other MEAs for observer status in the C TE be considered in accordance with the 
conditions at paragraph 8 above.  There s hould be a strong presumption that observer 
status be granted; 
(c) UNEP and all 'core' MEAs be granted observer status in the CTESS forthwith. Should 
interim measures be necessary :  UNEP and all 'core' MEAs be granted ad hoc  
observer status in the CTESS without delay for a renewable period of one-year; 
(d) Requests from UNEP, 'core' and other MEAs for observer status in other WTO 
committees be considered in accordance with  the conditions at paragraph 8 above. 
There should be a strong presumption that observer status be granted.   
 
__________