RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/GC/M/118 
30 March 2009 
 (09-1514) 
General Council 
3 February 2009  
 
 
 
MINUTES OF MEETING 
 
Held in the Centre William Rappard  
on 3 February 2009  
 
Chairman:  Mr Bruce Gosper (Australia) 
 
  Prior to the close of the meeting, the Chairm an bid farewell on behalf of all to the outgoing 
Counsellor in the Council & TNC Division, Mr. Nadir Alikhan, thanking him for his years of 
conscientious and dedicated service to the General Council.  Subjects discussed
: Page  
 
1. Report by the Chairman of th e Trade Negotiati ons Committee ..........................................1  
2. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the 
Dedicated Session of the Committee on Trade and Development ......................................13  
3. Non-recognition of rights under Article XXIV:6 and Article XXVIII of GATT 1994 – Communications from Honduras and Guatemala – Statement by the 
Chairman....................................................................................................................... ..........14
 
4. Review of the exemption provide d under paragraph 3 of GATT 1994 .............................18  
5. Appointment of the ne xt Director-General ..........................................................................20  
6. CWR building renovation project – Stat ement by the Director-General..........................21  
7. WTO Pension Plan – Election of members to the Management Board – Proposal 
by the Chairman of the General Council..............................................................................22  
8. Appointment of offi cers to WTO bodies...............................................................................22  
9. Netherlands – Seizure of generic medicin es in transit from India to Brazil......................24  
10. Seventh Session of the Ministerial Conference – Statement by the Chairman .................31  
11. Administrative Measures fo r Members in arrears ..............................................................31  
12. Election of Chairperson........................................................................................................ ..32 
 
 
1. Report by the Chairman of the Trade Negotiations Committee 
1. The Chairman  invited the Director-General, as Chairman of the TNC, to report on the TNC's 
activities since his last report to the Council. WT/GC/M/118 
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  2. The Director-General
 said that since his report to the Ge neral Council in De cember, news of 
the state of the world economy ha d become increasingly sombre.1  It was clear that trade had become 
one of the casualties of the economic crisis, with a sharp decrease in world trade.  Members' biggest 
challenge was therefore to ensure that trade was part of the solution as opposed to aggravating an 
already serious crisis that risked making the recessi on deeper and longer.  The current world growth 
projections were at zero per cent, with develope d countries posting a negative growth of -2 per cent 
and developing countries of around 5 per cent.  The positive growth came from emerging countries 
that were highly dependent on trade.  Everyone need ed to remember the lessons of history and keep 
this important engine of growth working.  The WTO' s role in this crisis had to go beyond its function 
as a safety net of rules, vital though this was.  As he had announced in December, work had begun on 
a number of fronts to assess where the organization could possibly be part of the solution to the 
current crisis.  The previous week he had issued  a first report on trade-related developments as a 
result, or in the context, of the financial crisis.  Members would have the opportunity to discuss this at 
an informal meeting of the TPRB scheduled for 9 Fe bruary.  The information in the report should be 
considered as work in progress, and he would be providing Members with further updates in the 
coming months to help them get a comprehensive a nd updated view of the situation.  Work was also 
under way on Trade Finance.  In November 2008 he had convened privat e banks, international 
financial institutions and regional development banks to assess the problem and look for solutions.  
The message that had come from this conference a nd the subsequent G-20 meeting on trade finance 
had boosted the mobilization of export credit agenci es and regional developm ent banks.  However, 
despite these efforts the situation remained critical , with trade financing drying up, particularly in 
developing countries, in a situation of rapid deterior ation of risk perception.  This in turn risked 
accelerating the contraction of trade and output in the only part of the world expected to sustain 
positive growth in 2009.  He had ag ain convened the main actors in the area to a meeting at the WTO 
on 18 March to continue to mobilize all actors to ensu re better access to trade finance.  Third, Aid for 
Trade had to be sustained and reinforced, particularly  now that the crisis was hitting hard many of the 
most vulnerable Members.  On 6 and 7 July, th e WTO would host the Second Global Aid for Trade 
Review.  In the interim, Members had to prepare the ground to show how Aid for Trade was working 
in practice and to review the fulfilment of the co mmitments to additionality.  He looked forward to 
working with the Chair of the CTD and th e membership to prepare this meeting. 
3. At the December meetings of the TNC and the General Council, many Members had called 
for a speedy conclusion of the Doha Round, and si nce then similar signals had continued to come 
from all regions and from political and business leader s alike.  The fundamental reasons why this 
Round was needed were now even more compelling and urgent than at the end of 2008.  Trade, with 
its multiplier effect, had to be an integral part of  the stimulus packages being adopted.  A successful 
outcome of the DDA could therefore be part of the solution to the economic downturn.  It would also 
send the political signal that at harsh and difficu lt times, governments we re capable of working 
together to provide the kind of global answer  so desperately needed.  Considering recent 
developments in government measures to  cope with the crisis, it was now  clear that  the trade side of 
the reaction could not be seen in isolation from the stimulus packages, and that international 
cooperation and coherence were indi spensable across the board.  Stimulating internal demand had an 
impact on imports, and there was a danger that discrepancies in the size of the injection of public funds, generated pressures to reserve their benefits  to domestic operators.  Such a "go-it-alone" 
approach would no doubt make the situation worse.  Mahatma Gandhi had said that an eye for an eye 
made the whole world blind.  At present one could say  that if it was a job for a job, there would be 
massive unemployment.  Since the beginning of the year, work had resumed in all areas of the 
negotiations, with the Chairs undertaking work accordi ng to the plans they had set out to Members at 
the December TNC.  He thanked delegations for their commitment to this work.  Several Members 
had recently gone through political changes and others  had elections coming up, but this could not be 
seen as a reason to sit on one's hands, although it did not help Memb ers to look with certainty at 
                                                      
1 The Director-General's statement was subsequently circulated as JOB(09)/5.  WT/GC/M/118 
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  particular timings for 2009.  However, as many had noted in December, there was a lot of work to do 
across the board to prepare for both the immediate goal of establishing modalities in Agriculture and 
NAMA and the medium-term one of successfully  concluding the negotiations under the Single 
Undertaking.  Members had to prepare everything they could now, so that when the moment was right for political decisions, they would be ready.  The previous week, on the sidelines of the World 
Economic Forum in Davos, the Swiss Federal Councillor for Economic A ffairs had hosted an 
informal gathering of trade Ministers with the aim of examining the impact of the economic crisis on 
trade and to take stock of where Members were in  the negotiations and the outlook for the year.  
Ministers present had recognized the dangers of sl iding into isolationism and tit-for-tat measures, 
which had proved so devastating in the past.  They  had also underlined the necessity to preserve and 
maintain the integrity and openness of a rule-based multilateral trading system which was at the heart 
of economic growth, furthering jobs and prosperity.  They had all continued to attach the highest 
priority to a successful conclusion of the Round and had recognized the major progress made in 2008 
towards finalizing modalities, which they believed provided a sound basis for an early resolution of 
the remaining differences.  With this continuing co mmitment at Ministerial level, he would continue 
in the coming weeks to ensure that the Round was kept  at the forefront of the issues facing leaders at 
the worldwide level.  One also looked to the Leader s of the G-20 to provide further impetus to this 
work when they met in London in April.  He would continue to work with the General Council Chair and the Negotiating Group Chairs to ensure the ne gotiations were taken forward across the board as 
rapidly as possible.  Members were working not only under time pressure, but also under the pressure of the need to make a positive contribution a nd a positive difference to the global economy. 
4. The representative of Switzerland
 assured the Director-General and the membership of the 
full support of his Federal Councillor for the way in  which the Director-General intended to pursue 
work.  Switzerland shared the Director-General's anal ysis that trade was presently deeply affected by 
the economic crisis, and the figures registered in Davos were more than preoccupying.  Ministers 
there had shared the view that trade was part of  the solution and that the conclusion of the Doha 
Round would provide an economic stim ulus with a multiplier effect.  Ho wever, there was also a need 
to build a better understanding of trade at home.  This was why in a climate in which governments 
faced protectionist measures, Switzerland supporte d the Director-General's  intention to increase 
transparency and put this to discussion.  Members should use this opportunity to develop elements of a common argumentation to better resist protectionist  pressures.  Ministers had insisted that the 
highest priority had to be given to concluding the Doha negotiations with an  ambitious and balanced 
outcome very soon, and to resolve the remaining differences building on the substantial package put 
on the table in 2008.  As his Federal Councillor ha d made very clear in Davos, general commitments 
were not enough.  Members now had to deliver a nd to ensure they did not let 2009 pass without a 
breakthrough in the negotiations.  In order to fo ster leadership in the negotiations, it had been 
proposed that Ministers meet more regularly to ta ke stock of what had been achieved and to give 
impetus to the work ahead.  Switzerland supported this idea and would support testing the possibility 
of a first meeting before the G-20 meeting in Apr il.  There could be another meeting on the margins 
of the OECD Ministerial at the end of June, before Ministers were probably invited to Geneva in July.  
His delegation fully shared the Director-General 's views regarding work in the next months. 
5. The representative of Egypt
, on behalf of the African Group , said the Group remained fully 
committed to a successful conclusion of the Doha Round and would continue to contribute positively 
to all efforts leading to convergence among Members.   Meanwhile, it should be clear that the outcome 
of the negotiations should have th e Doha development objectives at its core and should be based on 
the existing well-established mandates.  The Group w ould support all efforts by the Director-General 
to advance the negotiations, and wished to cautio n Members on any backtracking in the negotiations, 
which would lead to backtracking from others, erodi ng the chances of reaching an agreement.  Egypt 
therefore emphasized the need to preserve what ha d been achieved in 2008.  While it understood that 
many issues needed political decisions, Egypt welcom ed the resumption of the technical work, with a 
view to paving the way for political decisions when the time was right.  The unfolding global WT/GC/M/118 
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  financial and economic cris is had hit African economies hard.  Se veral African Ministers participating 
in the World Economic Forum meetings in Davos, in cluding Egypt's Minister of Trade and Industry, 
had underlined their deep concerns regarding its fa r reaching impact on national developmental plans, 
and the growing risks of protectionist measures a nd policies around the world.  Moreover, the crisis 
would affect economic sectors that were sensitive in African countries, and its impact would spread to 
production, exports, employment, investments, commodi ty prices, tourism, and remittances.  In light 
of this, the development objectives of the Doha  Round should be preserve d and strengthened.  
Particular attention should be given to providing meaningful a nd operational S&D treatment to 
developing and least-developed countries in all ar eas of negotiations.  Furthermore, it was important 
to underline that within the current global economic c ontext, there should be no attempts to reinterpret 
or change the mandates in any of the negotiating areas.  These should be correctly interpreted by 
developed-country Members to doing more to prov ide enhanced market access to developing and 
least-developed Members.  The Group welcomed the report by the Director-General on the financial 
and economic crisis and trade-rela ted developments.  He recalled that Egypt, during the informal 
General Council in November 2008 dedicated to the impact of the global financial crisis, had 
requested the Secretariat to prepare such periodi c reports in order to allow Members to provide 
information and clarification on measures and policy d ecisions related to the crisis.  As the situation 
was still fluid, Egypt hoped to recei ve update reports in the future. 
6. The representative of Mexico
 said his delegation fully supported the Director-General's plans 
for the next steps of the process.   There were more than enough argum ents to justify the need for a 
prompt conclusion to the Doha Round.  At present, it was enough to reiterate what the 
Director-General had said on other occasions – that  the successful conclusion of the Round would in 
itself be an insurance policy against protectionism.  Me xico fully agreed with him that this was part of 
the solution, since protectionism would not only beco me a part of the problem, but would also make it 
much bigger.  Mexico took the Director-General's  words very seriously.  At the G-20 meeting, and 
more recently in Davos, Mexico's President had iden tified the successful conclusion of the Round, in 
conjunction with the fight against protectionism, as one of the steps that needed to be taken to tackle 
the financial crisis and bring certainty back into the system.  Mexico firmly believed that reducing 
and, where appropriate, eliminating tariff barriers, rather than increasing them, was the best way to 
tackle the crisis.  Actions spoke louder than  words.  Members had undertaken an ambitious 
autonomous liberalization programme for industri al goods as from 1 January, and Mexico expected 
the outcome to go beyond the application of the Swiss formula to Mexico's bound levels.  The cut his 
country was going to make would be twice the size and implemented in ha lf the time.  It would in fact 
consist of five annual cuts, reducing the 2008 averag e applied tariff of 10.4 per cent to 4.3 per cent 
by 2013.  As a result of this reform, 63 per cent of industrial tariff lines would be reduced to zero 
by 2013.  The consolidation of this reform would form part of Mexico's contribution to the Doha 
Round.  Mexico hoped that other countries could ta ke similar action at th is time of economic 
emergency.  He reiterated Mexico's commitment to speeding up work at the WTO and concluding the 
Round successfully as soon as possible. 
7. The representative of Ecuador  said his delegation wished to refer briefly to the press 
statements and the report of the Director-General to the Trade Policy Review Body on the economic 
crisis.  It felt compelled to make this statemen t, because the previous da y the Ecuadorian press had 
echoed this report, which was neither unbiased nor complete, in the sense that it was not a balanced 
reflection of the instruments available or the di fferent economic situations in many developing 
countries, where the money to churn out huge s ubsidies was simply not available.  The press 
statements and the report of the Director-General we re incomplete because they referred to a rise in 
applied tariffs over bound tariff rates in Ecuador, a practice that was entirely legal under the WTO as 
long as the agreements were not revised.  What they  did not mention was that  this increase concerned 
barely 10 per cent of the entire tariff universe and,  most importantly, the report did not mention that 
this reform was coupled with a reduction in applied ta riffs, in many cases to zero, of 45 per cent of the 
tariff universe.  At the same time, Ecuador, availing itself of its rights under Section B of  WT/GC/M/118 
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  Article XVIII of GATT 1994 and the Understanding on Balance-of-Payments Provisions, had just 
applied a balance-of-payments measure that was limited in time and scope and one that many 
countries had adopted in the past.  The measure woul d be notified within the 30-day period stipulated 
in the above-mentioned provisions.  Ecuador had been  entirely transparent in this regard, and was 
ready to discuss the matter with any Member, as it had nothing to hide.  In the meantime, Ecuador 
wished to remind Members that it did not feel represented by the financial G-20, nor would it accept 
orders or undertakings from them, or from the group of illustrious thinkers in Davos, or indeed from 
anyone else unless these orders were the result of d ecisions taken by WTO Members on the basis of a 
consensus.  His delegation asked the Director-General not to accep t these undertakings, as they had 
not been decided by the 153 Members, nor was it righ t to report to bodies or groups of countries that 
were not representative of WTO bodies and the entir e membership.  If it was representativeness that 
was sought, there were alternatives that could be transmitted to the Director-General, such as those 
that had been heard by 100,000 people gathered at the Belem Social Forum.  Given the tendency in 
the WTO to create many monitoring groups, Ecua dor looked forward to a monitoring group being set 
up to report on the longest-running discrimination in  the history of the WTO and the GATT – namely, 
the bananas case and the repeated non-compliance with rulings of the Dispute Settlement Body – and 
to examining the reasons why, after decades,  this matter was still before Members. 
8. The representative of Bolivia  said her delegation had two qu estions regarding the points 
raised by the Director-General.  The first concer ned the recently issued report on the financial and 
trade crisis.  As her delegation recalled, Members had agreed in the General Council in December to 
hold a multilateral meeting before examining any re port, since no multilateral discussions had taken 
place until then with regard to a decision that seeme d to Bolivia to be hasty.  According to her 
delegation's notes, the General Council in December  had not taken a decision to convene such a 
multilateral meeting because it had not been clear when  one could be held.  She wished to make clear 
that she was not talking about discussing a report that had not been agreed upon either at the last or 
the present meeting, since Bolivia did see some meri t in the initiative.  However, the purpose of the 
multilateral meeting would be to pr ovide information, guidance and s upport with respect to the terms 
of reference for the preparation of such an im portant report.  Thus Bolivia, among others, had 
mentioned the need to include the United Nations in  the exercise to define the trade measures that 
related to the financial crisis, and those that re lated to, for example, disasters (UN Office for the 
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs), health (W HO), or matters of general interest (UNCTAD).  
Her delegation wished to know when the multilateral meeting to decide terms of reference would be 
held, and whether and when Members would be able to  give this exercise their go-ahead, since at the 
December meeting, in accordance with the Director-General's wo rds, Members had merely been 
presented with this idea for their consideration with out taking any decision.  Second, regarding the 
meeting on trade and finance to be held in March 200 9, Bolivia had expressed its surprise, in view of 
the importance and seriousness of current events for trade and finance, that at the December meeting 
none of the Members had been invited to join  the Director-General's dialogue with other 
organizations.  Indeed, Bolivia had asked that Me mbers be given the opportunity to explain their 
difficulties to other organizations so that they would have first-hand information.  Her question 
therefore was whether at the March meeting, provi sion would be made for Members to participate. 
9. The representative of the European Communities  said that his delegation was among those 
that had been disappointed that a breakthrough on  modalities had not been achieved in December, not 
least because it would have removed one of the items  on the Council's agenda to be discussed later.  
However, looking back at everything Members had ac hieved, one should not be too negative.  This 
was not a failing negotiation – it was slow because it was technically complex, politically sensitive 
and economically important.  However, the time ha d come to bring the negotiations to a successful 
end.  The Community shared the Dir ector-General's analysis of the cu rrent economic crisis. This crisis 
had actually increased the value of the Round as the best insurance policy against protectionism.  The 
EC hoped that the report on the monitoring exercise would underline this point clearly.  The Round was needed now more than ever.  By clearly demons trating the costs and the dangers of not reaching a WT/GC/M/118 
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  deal, the crisis would at least do something good,  by generating the necessary political will to push 
Members over the finishing line.  As the Director-General had said, many Ministers in Davos, including the EC Trade Commissioner, had agai n confirmed their commitment to the Round.  
Members now had to pursue their work energetically, to preserve the progress made so far and prevent any unravelling, and to prepare as much as possible at the technical level.  His delegation 
appreciated that the Chairs had re-started activ ities in their respective areas.  In NAMA, the EC 
welcomed the initiative that Chair to restart te chnical work on scheduling, NTBs, sectorals and 
country-specific treatment.  In Agriculture, there were  also issues to close, and it was essential that the 
progress set out in document TN/AG/W/4/Rev.4  be preserved and built upon.  On the GI register, 
constructive work was under way and had to be pursued.  On GI extension and CBD, the proponents 
were ready to re-launch technical discussions with those remaining few Members who had doubts 
about their proposals.  On Rules, on the basis of  the new text, it was important that work move 
forward in the present week's discussions.  The texts had demonstrated that there was a lot of work to 
be done.  On Services, the time available could certain ly be used profitably to clarify all positions so 
that when negotiations accelerated, Members were r eady.  On Trade and Environment, Members had 
to focus discussions on concrete environmental products  and show that the WTO could contribute in a 
substantive manner to address the environmental challe nges faced.  In Trade Facilitation, the next step 
was to tackle the key issue of S&D treatment and to draft a text.  On all these issues, the EC remained 
committed to a pro-development outcome of the  R ound.  Even though there was a lot of technical 
work that could and needed to be done, technical work could only bring Members to a certain point.  There was a need for engagement and commitment for the Round at the highest political level.  
Members should therefore do everything possible so  that the London G-20 Summit in April injected 
new life into the Doha Round, ensuring that openness,  rather than protectionism, would prevail, and 
that this summit would finally pave the way for a Ministerial conference to agree on modalities. 
10. The representative of Hong Kong, China
 said that despite the ups and downs of 2008, Hong 
Kong, China was glad to see that Members remained determined and were prepared to continue to 
work intensively towards an early and successful c onclusion of the Round.  It welcomed the renewal 
of the strong commitment to finalize the Doha Ne gotiations by those Ministers present in Davos the 
previous week.  The latest revised draft text s on Agriculture and NAMA had already successfully 
captured the significant and substantial progress ma de during, as well as since, the July 2008 
Ministerial meeting.  These texts should provide the basis for further discu ssions and the eventual 
conclusion of modalities in Agriculture and NAMA.   Although gaps did remain, they had already 
been narrowed considerably, and remaining diffe rences among Members were not irreconcilable, 
given sufficient political will on all sides.  Hong  Kong, China also supported the resumption of 
negotiations on other fronts, not least in Services, Rules and Trade Facilitation.  These were part of 
the Single Undertaking and thus essential to any successf ul Doha agreement.  In trade negotiations, it 
was natural that all were inclined to take more a nd give less, as all had their own trade interests and 
domestic industries to answer to.  However, this should not be a reason to put behind the greater good 
and the longer term benefits that further trade lib eralization could bring Members' economies and the 
world as a whole.  A successful Round could bring huge and sustainable benefits to the world as a 
whole and could act as an antidote to the spill-over of the financial contagion to trade, which had been 
happening for some time.  Conclusion of the Round could also serve as an e ffective insurance policy 
against protectionism in its many forms.  His delegation thanked the Chairs of NAMA and Services 
for having recently conducted info rmal consultations which had pr ovided a useful stocktake of 
progress and formed a solid basis for resuming wo rk in 2009.  Hong Kong, China noted with 
appreciation that the work of the Negotiating Groups on Rules and Trade Facilitation had already 
resumed.  It remained fully committed to working with the Chairs and Members, with a view to 
bringing the DDA negotiations to an early and successful conclusion.  Further, Hong Kong, China 
considered that the avoidance and monitoring of th e introduction of any protectionist trade measures 
should be a priority of the WTO in 2009.  It fully supported the Director-General's recent initiative to 
enhance the surveillance system of the WTO on tr ade measures implemented in the light of the 
economic crisis.  The Director-General's report to the TPRB of 26 January was a useful first step to  WT/GC/M/118 
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  this end.  Hong Kong, China looked forward to di scussing this on 9 February and to having more 
discussions in the TPRB on how the WTO surveillance system could be further strengthened.  This 
would allow the membership at large to monitor co llectively the efficiency and effectiveness of the 
multilateral trading system.  Given the serious constriction of trade credit, his delegation also supported the continued examination of issues impacti ng on trade finance, given the deleterious effect 
of its absence, particularly on developing-country tr ade, and looked forward to hearing the outcome of 
the next expert group meeting in mid-March. 
11. The representative of Cuba
 thanked the Director-General for the useful information he had 
provided, his views on the Doha R ound negotiations and his tireless efforts to conclude the Round.  
Strangely, the same Members who had denied the exis tence of a link between trade, debt and finance 
and disagreed with the creation of a WTO body to address this issue, were suddenly saying the 
opposite – that Members needed to reach agreem ents and conclude the Doha Round as soon as 
possible in order to prevent the financial crisis fro m adversely affecting world trade.  While there was 
such a link, the weakening and stagnation of world trad e were effects of the financial crisis and not its 
cause.  The crisis was affecting and would continue to affect world trade.  What one was seeing was a 
clear attempt to mislead and intense competition fo r developing-country markets and world oil, fuel, 
land, forest, water and mineral resources.  Among th e lessons to be learnt from the current state of 
global economic disorder was that, contrary to what  some believed, the market had no self-correcting 
mechanism.  The international financial institutions , the wealthy G-7 club, the Davos Forum and even 
the Trade Policy Review Body had said, in innumerable reports and rhetorical policy 
recommendations, that Members should let their economies and trade be governed by the free market, 
that markets were self-regulating, that countries should be transparent, have sound macroeconomic 
policies, good governance, and accountability, that they  should reduce the role of the State, and that 
State intervention of any kind amounted to relief to the dying.  All this rhetoric had led to the worst worldwide economic and financial crisis since the Depression of the 1930s.  What had happened 
when the current financial crisis had hit the Un ited States and other developed countries was that 
paradoxically, instead of applying their own principles, instead of putting corrupt and irresponsible 
executives on trial and in jail, instead of letting the so-called free market prevail and self-regulate, and 
instead of letting bankrupt companies close down, the governments of the developed countries had come to the rescue with direct state intervention and nationalization, subsid izing bankrupt firms by 
injecting them with millions of dollars worth of public funds with no conditions attached. 
12. The first and most important lesson of the cris is was not to believe what one was told by 
bankers, international financial institutions, and the governments of  the developed countries.  The 
only real option was not to continue to apply the ol d principles, which had failed, but to try different 
approaches.  Liberalization was part of the probl em, not the solution.  Liberalization was not only 
about reducing tariffs.  Asymmetric liberalizati on between the developing and developed countries 
and between agriculture and NAMA was part of the problem.  Market access had no meaning in trade 
terms if it did not entail real entry into markets, a nd was not equivalent to market entry for developing 
countries.  Customs tariffs had become less important since the Uruguay Round, as the number of regional and bilateral free trade agreements had gr own.  While tariffs were being reduced, trade 
barriers persisted:  the subsidies granted by de veloped countries, which were worth millions and 
would be reduced only cosmetically within the Doha Round;  new and complex non-tariff barriers, 
such as sanitary and phytosanitary and technical measures;  and private standards with which 
exporters from developing countries sometimes found it impossible to comply.  The alternative for 
the developing countries of building social networks to  cope with the crisis and with the cost of the 
adjustments needed for further trade liberalization wa s neither realistic nor feas ible.  Most developing 
countries had no such social infrastructure and at times of crisis their open economies, which relied 
for their financing on decreasing foreign trade reve nue, tariffs, foreign investment, remittances from 
migrant workers and aid, could not, in the short or  medium term, build the social security networks 
that existed in some developed countries. WT/GC/M/118 
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  13. Two other key factors which limited the scope of the alleged benefits of trade liberalization 
for developing countries were unequal terms of trade – volatility and decreases in the prices of their exports, mainly primary commodities, and increases in the prices of their industrial imports – and 
fluctuations in exchange rates for the main currencies.  Both factors were characteristics of the global 
trading system which needed to be addressed, yet neith er issue was even discus sed in the WTO.  Even 
the World Bank, in a simulation of the gains projected  for the year 2015 on the basis of an eventual 
Doha Round agreement, and in a more ambitious scen ario than that afforded  by the current proposals 
on the table, had concluded that the total ga ins would amount to US$96 billion, with only 
US$16 billion, a sixth of the total, going to devel oping countries.  The benefits for developing 
countries were estimated at 0.16 per cent of GDP, and it was expected that 50 per cent of these would 
flow to no more than eight developing countries.  Gi ven the unequal terms of trade that prevailed and 
the fact that many developing countries produced and exported the same types of goods, the policy recommendations to increase exports, issued up to now by international bodies, led to a vicious circle 
of market flooding or oversaturation, and conse quently to a drastic reduction in prices of raw 
materials and a drop in developing countries' revenu es, thus increasing their debt and limiting their 
opportunities to diversify and improve their export capacity.  Free trade was asymmetrical, and double 
standards prevailed.  While demanding free access to  the economies of the developing world, the 
developed countries had been less willing to offe r the same access.  Their barriers reducing the 
number of goods entering their markets from the deve loping countries were often higher than those 
that wealthy countries encountered in developing countries.  The cost of these barriers for the developing countries amounted to US$100 billion a year in lost potential revenue, a sum equivalent to 
almost twice the aid offered by the developed countries, according to a 2002 UNCTAD report.  
Moreover, the WTO rules and trade negotiations coul d affect governments' capacity to respond to 
emergency food situations, and in the longer term, to implement policies and instruments that could 
promote agricultural development.  In rural areas in developing countries, where agriculture and food 
production were the main source of employment and income for most poor people, there was no 
guarantee that a rise in imports would lead to incr eased food security – in fact, quite the opposite.  
Therefore, with the current lack of resources, po licies and institutions to support agriculture and the 
diminishing agricultural production capacity of many developing countries, the further liberalization 
of tariffs could lead to growing dependency on imports, to food insecurity and to an increase in 
poverty.  Within the framework of the WTO disciplines, the Marrakesh Decision on Net 
Food-importing Developing Countries could play an impor tant role in the current context.  So far, 
however, it had not been implemented effectively.   Cuba remained committed to the successful 
conclusion of the Doha Round, but only on the basis of total compliance with the Doha mandates, in particular those relating to development and S&D treatment for developing countries, inclusion, 
transparency and the effective participation of all Members at each stage of the negotiations. 
14. The representative of Japan
 said that as stated by Japan's Mini sters at the informal Ministerial 
meeting in Davos, Japan remained committed to an early conclusion of the DDA, as well as the 
prevention of protectionism.  In order to keep the momentum of the Round, it was now important to pursue further the technical-level discussions in a ll the negotiating areas, not only in Agriculture and 
NAMA, but also in areas such as Rules, Services and Trade Facilitation.  In this regard, Japan 
welcomed the resumption of Rules negotiations that  week and was ready to participate actively in 
them.  On protectionism, as the G-20 and APEC l eaders had committed themselves in 2008, Members 
should not raise new barriers to investment or trad e.  In Davos, Ministers had also confirmed the 
importance of resisting protectionism.  Japan supported increasing the transparency of trade measures in the WTO and was ready to contribute to this wo rk.  It looked forward to participating in the 
discussion in the TPRB the following week. 
15. The representative of Chinese Taipei
 said his delegation shared the Director-General's view 
that the DDA should remain the primary focus of th e WTO agenda in 2009.  As a recently acceded 
Member, Chinese Taipei was particularly keen on early completion of the DDA, which would narrow 
the gap between the extent of its commitments an d those of other Members at a similar level of  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 9 
 
 
  development.  Therefore, it full y supported any work that would help move the DDA forward.  It 
looked forward to engaging in the forthcoming sessions of the Negotiating Groups on Rules and 
Trade Facilitation, and to making further progress on technical issues relating to NAMA, Agriculture 
and Services.  Chinese Taipei remained optimistic th at Members could harvest the mutual benefits of 
the Round in 2009 by working hard together to achieve a successful conclusion. 
16. The representative of Turkey  reiterated his country's commitment to the successful conclusion 
of the Doha Round in 2009.  The immediate task was to finalize modalities in Agriculture and NAMA 
expeditiously.  However, as the Director-General had said, Members should keep in mind that the 
WTO was more than the Doha Round.  There had been a growing specter of protectionism as the repercussions of the global financial crisis be came more visible.  He would not discuss the 
Secretariat's recent report on this matter, as an in formal TPRB meeting had been scheduled for this 
purpose.  Turkey supported this initiative.  While  the stimulus packages being adopted by various 
governments could be tolerated for a limited or brie f period as political reality or necessity, if these 
turned into general practices, the danger of unde rmining what Members had worked so hard to 
achieve would also be a reality.  Overcoming the current economic and fina ncial crisis would be 
possible only by a multilateral approach and global cooperation.  There should be better cooperation 
among the international economic institutions.  Tu rkey fully supported the Director-General's 
initiatives on trade finance, and en couraged him to engage in new projects in this area.  Turkey 
believed the role of Ministerial Conferences should be revived.  The existing Doha mandate was an 
important achievement and should be preserved.  Wh at would be expected from Ministers was merely 
political guidance within the existing mandate.  Accord ing to Article IV of the Marrakesh Agreement, 
there should be a Ministerial Conference composed of representatives of all the Members which 
should meet at least once every two years.  No Ministerial Conference had been held since 2005, 
except the mini-Ministerial in July 2008, which ha d been linked to the Doha negotiations but not to 
the work of the WTO in broader terms.  On the other hand, informal methods of coordination and decision-making – namely, informal small-group consu ltations – seemed to have failed to yield either 
effectiveness in the work of the WTO or a clear perspective for a comprehensive result.  Turkey 
understood that for practical reasons a limited coor dination might be necessary in terms of process, 
but a small group of Members should not take d ecisions on content.  "Faits accomplis" were 
detrimental to the principles of transparency and inclusiveness and would cause discomfort among Members.  Hence, full Ministerial Conferences s hould be convened according to a regular calendar, 
preferably every other year in July, regardless of the state of play in multilateral negotiations.  Regular 
Ministerial meetings would contribute to furthering  the Doha negotiations as well.  At the same time, 
they would prevent excessive expectations and reduce pressure on the negotiators, and introduce a 
more democratic system of decision-making that took into account the views of the whole membership. 
17. The representative of Colombia
 said it had been scarcely more than a month since the 
Director-General's last report on the TNC, and his delegation realized that in so short a time there was 
little to recount in terms of progress.  However, as with  riding a bicycle, it was by keeping up a certain 
speed that one maintained one's balance, and he wi shed to stress both these te rms.  Colombia thanked 
the Director-General for his tireless efforts to con tinue to move the Doha work programme forward by 
speaking in international fora to advocate the be nefits of a more open trading system, and by 
contacting world leaders in order to keep up th e political momentum needed.  At the same time, 
Members had resumed technical work in several of the negotiating areas.  In particular, Colombia 
welcomed those groups which had not  been engaged in any negotiating activities in the latter part of 
2008.  At the moment there were no fair winds, but the WTO could respond to the present crisis.  In 
statements by leaders in the G-20 and APEC, a comm itment had been made to make every endeavour 
to reach agreement on modalities before the end of 2 008.  Unfortunately, Members had been unable to 
meet that objective, but they had to continue to work  on it.  The crisis could not be allowed to lead to 
inertia.  In fact, the word "krisis" in Greek mean t the moment for decision.  Thus, Members had to 
make up their minds.  Colombia encouraged the Dire ctor-General to continue to press for the political WT/GC/M/118 
Page 10  
 
  momentum to bring about changes that would give  the final push for the establishment of modalities, 
preferably before the end of 2009.  His delegati on hoped that this message would be heard in the 
forthcoming summits and in other fora.  In the words of a French philosopher of the late 1960s, 
"Leave Sisyphus to his imaginary cliffs, and be a happy Icarus".  He hoped this thought would guide 
the Director-General in his unremitting endeavours to bring the negotiations to a successful 
conclusion. 
18. The representative of Korea
 said the Director-General's report enlightened Members on the 
action that was urgently needed against the bac kdrop of the current economic crisis.  In Davos, 
business people from around the world had shared their view that trade was more important than ever 
before.  They had identified trade as the most useful  vehicle to pull countries out of the current global 
economic slowdown triggered by th e financial crisis.  Trade Ministers on their part had also 
emphasized that concluding the DDA negotiations at the earliest possible date was one of  the most 
important contributions they could make to preser ve the global economy at a time of economic crisis 
and shield it from a protectionist backlash.  It w as time to translate those views into practical and 
concrete actions within the WTO.  In this c ontext, his delegation stood ready to resume the 
negotiations on the basis of what had been achieved by December 2008.  It also supported the 
Director-General's idea that, rather than focu sing only on Agriculture and NAMA, it was time to 
resume negotiations in all areas,  including Services, Rules and Trade Facilitation.  However, efforts 
within the WTO should not be limited to the DDA ne gotiations.  Members also had to work on issues 
beyond the DDA context, in particular, the fight against rising protectionism.  Monitoring through the TPRM had to be highlighted and reinforced, there by making it a relevant and effective tool through 
which the WTO maintained its legitimacy and rele vancy amidst the turmoil caused by the present 
global economic crisis.  He reaffirmed Korea's fi rm commitment to the DDA negotiations and support 
for Members' collective efforts to keep world trade free and open. 
19. The representative of Norway
 said that at Davos she had appreciated the atmosphere of 
seriousness and urgency among the Ministers presen t.  The financial crisis was developing and 
deepening and would get worse before it got better.  Crisis management in terms of financial packages 
at the national level was necessary at present.  Th e underlying problem needed long-term solutions.  
All participants in Davos had rec ognized the role of trade and WTO rules and disciplines as being part 
of the cure.  The successful conclusion of the Ro und was obviously an important part of this and 
something Members would do immediately if they could.  In order to get there, Members had to base themselves on what was presently on the table.  They also needed to include measures relevant to the 
new situation the financial crisis  had brought.  Members' inability to agree earlier and this new 
situation demanded careful preparation.  To that effect, Norway supported Ministerial meetings when 
there was a possibility to make progress, and the Di rector-General's progres s the past autumn had 
been good in that respect.  In the meantime, Memb ers should continue their work step by step to 
create the basis for agreement on Agriculture a nd NAMA, and then on other remaining issues like 
Rules and Services within the Single Undertaking.  In addition, they should engage in discussions 
based on the Secretariat's reports on trade measures,  starting with the TPRB the following week.  One 
should not be naive – national rescue measures would be  put in place for political reasons.  This could 
be positive, simply because they might keep people employed, with a salary to buy goods and services 
– both locally and from abroad.  Members should use the monitoring mechanism under the TPRB to keep each other in check, so th at these measures did not escalate out of control and result in 
protectionism.  
20. The representative of Brazil
 said that at the present juncture, one could not dissociate the 
work of the TNC from the current financial and economic crisis.  This crisis had been i nitiated in the 
main econo mies a nd refle cted their macroeco nomic an d financ ial im balances, as wel l as their 
regulatory deficiencies .  Although deve loping co untries could not in any way be blamed for the 
financial crisis , many were likely to be severe ly hit .  Data on international trade , GDP growth rates 
and employment showed that the financial crisis had undou btedly reac hed the real economy.  No one  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 11 
 
 
  disagreed t hat the key aspect of glo balization resi ded in the integration of the prod uctive process for 
goods and services.  Such integration in volved trans -border movement of capital, goods, services, and 
peop le.  Tra de flows were the most evident feature of this phenomenon .  Trade could not be an 
afterthought in any disc ussion a bout t he current crisis, its effects a nd the means fo r recovery.  
Economic introspection, with a protectionist bias or lack of a prospective g lobal visi on, was a sure 
recipe for a long period of sluggish growth, or even recession,  with unavoida ble socia l repercussions .  
Protectionism emerged in difficu lt times and was a contagious disease.  The Director -Genera l had 
circulated a paper en umerating several measures destined to protect na tional markets .  They varied in 
shape, degree and nat ionality, but most served the purpose of either dimini shing c ompetition wi th 
impor ted products or im proving the situation of selected economic sectors by mea ns of government 
support of some kind.  In both cases, the short -term benefits were outweighe d by the long-term 
side-effects , which made recovery more difficult .  These "rescue packages" in develope d countries 
often put further strain on alrea dy del icate a nd sensitive economic balances, to the detrime nt of 
developing co untries.  The latter, in turn, would tend to react by resorting to the least expensive 
measure – raising tariffs.  While ma ny of these actions were questionab le under WTO disciplines – 
and Members might even close their eyes to  them for a while – some might be perfect ly legal within 
the current framework , which did not make them either helpful or beneficial . 
21. Locking in the progress made over the past seven years of DDA negotiations was a key 
ingredient to avoid a protectionist and inter ventionist trend and its domino effect that would be 
extremely hard to reverse later.  Members had to  act quickly, solve the few remaining problems, and 
make no new demands.  The draft te xts tabled in December by the Agriculture and NAMA Chairs had 
brought Members very close to the conclusion of modalities.  These texts were not the way they were 
by accident, but reflected a give-and-take bargaini ng process that had matured over seven years of 
intense negotiations .  Any attempts  at the present stage to extract further concessions from others 
would not be doable without a major rebalancing of the trade -offs, which would set Members back 
several years.  A serene and objective evalua tion of the present package would inevitably show there 
were significant gains for each and every Member , even if these gains fell short of original 
expectations – and this could not be otherwise .  The value of what was on the table should be 
perceived even more clear ly now in the present crisis with all the accompanying threats.  Members 
either seized this opportunity to ensure the conclu sion of the most ambitious Round in the history of 
the GATT /WTO system , or left room for the legal  imposition of additional trade barriers.  With the 
wrong ingredients , the so -called  water could become cement .  If Members chose to seize this 
opportunity , political will was needed from all, but especially from the major players.  Brazil 
remained committed to a conclusion of the Doha  Round in the shortest possible time-frame, and 
assured the Director-General of its support for all his efforts to that end. 
22. The representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela  said his delegation endorsed the 
statements by Ecuador, Cuba and Bo livia concerning the need to reth ink the form that had hitherto 
been adopted for conducting the Doha Round negoti ations, not only because it was exclusionary, but 
also because Members needed to take a fresh look at the path towards market liberalisation as the 
mechanism that would resolve all their problems.  Above all, caution had to be exercised regarding 
from whom proposals were received, since many of  those who had met recently in Davos were 
responsible for the current global economic crisis, yet had no compunction about continuing to tell the 
world what should be done.  In many of the statements  made in that forum, it  had been said that this 
was a Round for market liberalization and a develo pment Round.  However, the development of the 
most needy meant that the organization had a duty  to pay heed to the more than one hundred 
Members who were in just such a situation, by changing its methods, ensuring open meetings and 
consensus rather than imposed decisions that merely  appeared to be democratic.  Venezuela was still 
committed to multilateralism and to the Doha Round,  provided it fulfilled its mandate as a Round for 
the development of Members' peoples.   WT/GC/M/118 
Page 12  
 
  23. The Director-General
 said he wished to make two short poi nts.  First, on the transparency in 
trade policy development exercise, he had tabled a first report of facts and figures on both trade-restricting and trade-easing measures.  This would be discussed in the relevant body, the TPRB, under 
the chairmanship of its Chair and under the existing mandate.  As he had said, this was a work in 
progress and any idea about how to improve it was we lcome.  Second, on trade finance, which was 
the issue of the availability and affordability of  credit for import/export transactions, the March 
meeting he had mentioned, like the November 2008 m eeting, would be a meeting of experts which he 
had convened from private banks, Exim  banks, multilateral and regional development banks.  This 
meeting would be reported on, as had been the case for the November meeting, to the relevant WTO 
body, which was the Trade, Debt and Finance Work ing Group under the chairmanship of its Chair.  
As in the previous case, there was already a mandate and a place for Members to present their views, 
and he had confirmation that both Chairs were ava ilable to discuss this further with Members who felt 
the need to do so. 
24. The representative of Bolivia
 said her delegation appreciated th e Director-General's response.  
However, Bolivia wanted the affairs of the organiza tion to be carried out in a manner that respected 
the agreements, procedures, legality and legitimacy of the organization.  In this way all Members, and 
not just some, would feel represented, regardless of whether they were part of the G-20 or not.  The G-153, i.e. the entire membership, should be give n precedence over the G-20.  Countries such as hers 
fully understood the importance of the rules, and if  procedures, legality and legitimacy were not taken 
into account – as had been the case for the nearly two years she had been Ambassador to the WTO – 
all would subsequently have problems in various areas of the organization.  She would have to 
continue making similar statements in the future until the rules were observed. 
25. The representative of Costa Rica
 said he wished to reiterate his country's willingness to work 
closely with the membership to ensure the successful conclusion of  the Doha Round in 2009.  The 
progress already made had enabled Members to come close to establishing modalities in both agriculture and NAMA in July 200 8.  Since then, further progress had been made, and this was 
reflected in the two Chairmen's texts.  Costa Rica therefore continued to believe that agreement on 
modalities and progress in other areas were possible a nd within reach in 2009.  Members had to work 
together to maintain the momentum and consolidat e this progress into agreements, and his delegation 
was pleased that work had also resumed on other issues.  Costa Rica was concerned about some 
governments' reactions in resorting to remedies that  would lead to increased protectionism, and urged 
them to be aware of the great danger of falling into a spiral of escalating protectionism in response to 
the serious financial crisis that  was already having an adverse effect on the real economy.  The 
proposal to introduce monitoring was very appropr iate and his delegation would participate in it 
actively.   The current international economic crisis  validated globalization, and should not be used as 
a reason to reject globalization and its benefits .  Now was the time to prove the importance of 
globalization by reacting collectively to this crisis with policies that would boost growth.  One method 
that had proven to be effective was trade liberali zation.  In any human activity, freedom and the right 
of individuals to act, think and organize themselves as  they saw fit would always be preferable to the 
opposite.  In the fields of trade, finance and crimin al law, the individual's actions were governed by 
rules, regulations and laws, which imposed certain r estrictions that had been identified over time.  
However, there would always be those who found loopholes enabling them to abuse the established 
rules, and this could be seen in every field, be it trade, finance or criminal or constitutional law, but 
this was the risk that living in freedom entailed.  There would always be the risk that someone might 
abuse the rules, which was why each legal system had to be vigilant and monitor the actions of those on whom these systems conferred rights, and revise th e rules when they were abused.  However, in 
revising such rules and establishing that they had been abused, it was impossible to conclude that 
freedom itself was a problem or bore the blame for the abuse, whether in finance, trade or criminal or 
constitutional law.  This was why at present, partic ularly now that one had identified abuses in the 
financial system and needed to take steps to  prevent such abuses and remedy their severe  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 13 
 
 
  consequences, Members had to be more aware than  ever that freedom was never to blame.  Once 
again, abuses in freedom were always preferable to abuses against freedom. 
26. The General Council took note  of the Director-General's report and of the statements. 
2. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the Dedicated 
Session of the Committee on Trade and Development 
27. The Chairman  recalled that at its meeting in Febr uary and March 2002, the General Council 
had taken note of a framework and procedures fo r the conduct of the Work Programme on Small 
Economies, under which this Work Programme w ould be a standing item on the General Council's 
agenda.  The framework and procedures also pr ovided that the Committee on Trade and Development 
should report regularly to the General Council on th e progress of work in its Dedicated Sessions on 
this subject.  Furthermore, Ministers at Hong Kong had instructed the CTD, under the overall responsibility of the General Council,  to continue the work in the Dedicated Session and to monitor 
progress of the small economies' proposals in the ne gotiating and other bodies.  In December 2006, on 
the basis of a report by the Chair of the CTD in Dedicated Session, the General Council had taken 
note that Members in that body would be pursui ng the substantive work under the Small Economies 
Work Programme.   
28. Mr Servansing (Mauritius), Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the Committee on Trade 
and Development , recalled that he had reported in Dece mber that the proponents of the Work 
Programme had proposed a new area of work for th e Dedicated Session, which concerned the impact 
of the financial crisis on SVEs, especially on the demand for their goods and services, and the 
implications for their key sectors such as tourism,  financial services, fisheries, textiles, light 
manufacturing and primary agricultural production.  At  that meeting, it had been suggested that the 
Secretariat liaise with the Financial Crisis Task Force, which had been established by the Director-General at the end of 2008, in order to  monitor the impact the crisis was having on key 
sectors and also on the ability of SVEs to access expo rt financing.  Consulta tions had begun between 
the proponents of SVEs and the Task Force, and the SVE proponents had communicated their concerns.  Efforts were now being made by the Secretariat as well as the proponents to monitor the 
situation and to gather as much information as po ssible in order to identify the scope and possible 
repercussions of the crisis.  He would keep the General Council informed on how work on this issue 
was progressing.  In parallel, the Dedicated Session w ould continue to monitor issues of interest to 
SVEs as they developed in the Doha Round and the WTO Committees. 
29. The representative of Barbados
, on behalf of the SVEs , welcomed the report by the Chair of 
the CTD Dedicated Session.  Against the backgroun d of the present uncertain times in the financial 
sector and with the continuing worldwide economic slowdown, the SVEs had begun to consider how 
to avert the worst impact of the crisis.  At the November meeting of the Dedicated Session, the SVEs 
had requested that the Secretariat liaise with the Task Force to monitor any possible impact of the 
crisis on their economies.  They had stated then, and emphasized once again, that the impact might 
not be immediate but would certainly be felt in due time, as it permeated all aspects of their already vulnerable and highly dependent economies.  They welcomed the level of engagement they had 
already had with the Chair of th e Task Force, and heeded the call to share information on the 
implications of the economic slowdown on their econom ies.  The aim of their interface with the Task 
Force and their recommendation that the Secretaria t monitor the impact on their economies was not to 
duplicate ongoing work, but rather to ensure that the central mandate of the Small Economies Work 
Programme, which was to ensure the fuller integra tion of SVEs into the world economy, remained 
relevant enough to examine factors which threatened their expectation of fuller integration.  As the 
SVEs continued work in all areas under the DDA, they expected that the Dedicated Session would 
continue to fulfill its mandate and create an oppor tunity for a facts-based discussion on how SVEs 
could confront the challenges ahead. WT/GC/M/118 
Page 14  
 
  30. The General Council took note
 of the report by the Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the 
Committee on Trade and Development and of the statement. 
3. Non-recognition of rights under Article XXIV:6 and Article XXVIII of GATT 1994 – 
Communications from Honduras and Guatem ala (WT/GC/85, WT/GC/90 and Corr.1, 
WT/GC/100, WT/Min(05)/9) – Statement by the Chairman 
31. The Chairman  recalled that this matter had first been  raised by the delegations of Honduras 
and Guatemala at the Council meeting in December 2004 .  It had subsequently been considered by the 
General Council at each of its regular meetings sin ce then, without resolution.  In the light of the 
views expressed at these meetings, and the re quests for consultations made by Honduras and 
Guatemala and other delegations, his predecessors as Chair, and he, had held consultations regularly 
in order to assist in finding a way forward.  He recalled that the matter referred to the General Council 
concerned the non-recognition of claims of substa ntial interest submitted by Honduras and Guatemala 
in the very specific context of the EC's modification of its concessions as a result of enlargement from 15 to 25 members, and the modification of its  concession on bananas in its move to a tariff-only 
regime as from 1 January 2006.  This matter had been  brought to the General Council in keeping with 
Paragraph 4 of the 1980 Procedures for Negotiati ons under Article XXVIII, under which, when a 
Member renegotiating its Schedule did not recognize a claim of principal or substantial supplying 
interest, the Member making the claim "may refer the matter to the Council." 
32. At the December General Council meeting, he ha d reported to delegations on his most recent 
consultations.  In view of the statements made at that Council, he had proposed that the General 
Council revert to this matter at the present meet ing.  The previous day he had held further 
consultations to allow delegati ons to be updated on contacts that  might have taken place among the 
parties directly concerned since December, and on any developments on the overall banana issue that 
could provide a possible solution to the non-recognition issue raised in the Council.  He had invited to 
the consultations all the delegations  who had spoken on this issue at pr evious meetings of the Council, 
and had made clear that the consultations were w ithout prejudice to any Member's rights under the 
WTO.  He could report that while there had b een little substantive development overall since the 
December Council, the consultations had proved useful  in clarifying both the current state-of-play and 
its ramifications, as well as the steps that were in tended to be taken in the coming weeks towards a 
resolution to the concerns of the delegations invol ved.  That being said, he was disappointed that 
Members had not been able to move further toward s a resolution of this important matter during his 
tenure as Chair, and regretted that he had not been ab le to help further.  Nevertheless, he had been 
encouraged by the spirit of the discussion and the clear statements of position, and remained hopeful 
that a solution to this issue would be found soon.  He was confident that his successor as Chair would 
use his good offices to explore further with the part ies directly concerned the possibilities of such an 
early resolution. 
33. The representative of Honduras
 thanked the Chair for his efforts through the past year to find 
a solution to this matter.  As the Chair had not ed, this matter regrettably remained unresolved.  
Honduras had been recognized by the EC as princi pal supplier for a number of products and as a 
substantial supplier for others, in connection with the enlargement of the EC from 15 to 25 members.  
However, Honduras had still not received the compen sation to which WTO rules entitled it.  As for 
the banana issue, over a number of years Honduras had put forward legal, commercial and systemic 
arguments in its attempt to gain recognition by th e EC of its substantial supplying interest, and until 
July 2008 had failed to identify a way forward.  On  27 July 2008, Latin American suppliers and the 
EC had concluded an agreement to resolve the entir e banana issue, and had the EC implemented it, 
the General Council would have had no reason to be discussing this matter at the present meeting.  As 
all knew, the EC had demolished what had been achie ved, as within only hours of defining the terms 
of the agreement, it had withdrawn the agreemen t from the negotiating table, thus precluding its 
signature.  As a result, the EC would not be comply ing with the obligations it had undertaken in that  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 15 
 
 
  agreement, and indeed the first cut in the EC's bana na tariff, foreseen in the July agreement to take 
effect on 1 January 2009, had not been implemented.   That a month had gone by without the agreed 
cut being made was a serious setback, but much wor se was that three years had elapsed since the EC 
was to have established a much lower and non-discrim inatory tariff on bananas, and that well before 
the date it should have made adjustments for its enlargement.  Honduras had not seen any inclination 
on the EC's part to compensate the Latin Ameri can banana-producing countries for the economic loss 
it was causing them by refusing to apply the agreed cuts.  He could not speak more plainly – the world 
had to be told that the unlawful tariff of €176/ mt imposed on the Latin American banana-producing 
countries by the EC was devastating for the devel oping economies of Latin America.  The EC could 
argue that it was making fresh efforts to negotiate, but Honduras saw no need to explore other options 
when the parties already had the Ju ly agreement on bananas.  The Appellate Body, by its decision in 
the Article 21.5 actions brought by Ecuador and the United States, had added weight to Latin 
America's case, and it was unthinkable that in the light of its findings, anyone should expect these 
countries to forego their rights.  As long as the EC refused to honour the July agreement, Honduras 
was bound to maintain the non-recognition of its interest  as a substantial supplier to the EC market as 
an item on the Council's agenda.  He reiterated that  the EC had no right to calculate substantial 
interest on the basis of the trade levels of a period during which it had maintained discriminatory 
quantitative restrictions.  Honduras' decision to accep t the July agreement stood, but the EC had to 
give up its demands for further sacrifices, partic ularly at a time when the world was condemning 
protectionism and seeking ways to strengthen multila teralism.  As one of the main players on the 
multilateral scene, the EC should preach by example and abandon its own protectionist practices. 
34. The representative of Guatemala  said his delegation agreed with the statement by Honduras.  
Guatemala likewise took this opportunity to repeat  what it had said in General Council meetings for 
four years – namely, that it had both a trade and a syst emic interest in this matter, and that its trade 
interest was not limited to bananas alone.  Howeve r, a comprehensive solution to the banana issue 
was key to facilitating settlement of this matter.  Th e ability to resolve the problem lay in the hands of 
the EC.  As the membership was aware, on 27 Ju ly the leading MFN banana-exporting countries and 
the EC had reached an agreement on trade in bananas,  the main characteristic of which was that it was 
not locked into the negotiations on modalities a nd the Doha Round.  In other words, it was a 
stand-alone agreement, as the text itself stipulat ed.  A major consequence of the agreement, the 
outcome of which primarily benefited the EC, was th at its entry into force and strict implementation 
would bring to a final close all ongoing disputes and legal proceedings against the EC relating to the 
banana issue, including the current claim pert aining to bananas under Articles XXIV and XXVIII.  
The ability to resolve positively the matter of non-r ecognition of rights for Guatemala lay in the hands 
of the EC.  It needed only to implement the Ju ly agreement on bananas in accordance with the 
time-frames and the terms set out therein, but it had not  done so.  Guatemala also drew attention to the 
risk inherent in the link the EC made between  the agreement on bananas and the Doha Round 
modalities.  In such a case, he asked what the purpose would be of maintaining a credit clause or 
agreeing to a high final tariff that could be impr oved on through the negotiation of modalities, and 
why dispute settlement or other rights should be li nked in any way to either enlargement of the 
European Union or to modalities.  He recalled that his delegation's mandate was to monitor 
Guatemala's trade and systemic interests.  Until the EC actually implemented the July agreement on 
bananas, it would continue to exercise Guatemal a's rights in the General Council and any other 
relevant WTO.   
35. The representative of Ecuador  thanked the Chairman for his effo rts to try to bring the parties 
closer together and settle this issue.  As his dele gation had said in the past, this was a systemic issue 
that was critical for recognition of the rights of small exporters under Articles XXIV:6 and XXVIII of the GATT 1994.  He reiterated that the entire bana na problem and the question of possible flexibilities 
with respect to tropical products and preference eros ion under the Doha Round could be settled if the 
EC signed the agreement on bananas of 27 July 2008,  which would, in addition, put an end to the 
longest-running legal dispute in the history of the WT O.  That agreement was completely independent WT/GC/M/118 
Page 16  
 
  of any agreement on modalities in the Doha Round.  Indeed, a reading of the July text, and in 
particular paragraphs 4 and 5, s howed that Ecuador and the other La tin American countries were right 
and that this was unquestionably true.  The EC, taki ng advantage of its power in this organization, 
was refusing to comply with the July agreement fo r reasons that boiled down to protectionism in its 
purest form.  The object of this agreement was co mpliance with the recommendations of the DSB and 
payment of compensation pursuant to Article XXV III of the GATT 1994 in respect of the successive 
EU expansions of 2004 and 2007.  An y renegotiation of this agreement could give rise to a situation 
that was difficult to resolve and whose impact on th e satisfactory balance achieved in July would be 
unpredictable.  The EC could rapidly resolve all of the pending banana issues and put an end to what 
had become a permanent source of irritation in the history of the GATT and the WTO.  By doing so, it 
would also obviate the need for Ecuador to resort to  the cross-retaliatory trade measures authorized by 
the DSB, or to bring new claims against the EPAs between the EU and the ACP countries and the 
subsidies granted by the EC to its producers – subs idies that were financed by Ecuador's producers 
and exporters through the pa yment of an illegal tariff. 
36. The representative of Mexico
 thanked the Chair for his efforts throughout the year on this 
issue.  Mexico's position on this matter was well- known, and there was no need to repeat it.  A 
comprehensive agreement on bananas would not on ly solve access problems and settle the various 
pending disputes, but would also give a very positiv e signal at this critical juncture to the world 
economy, and help show how we ll the organization functioned. 
37. The representative of Panama  regretted that this item was still on the Council's agenda and 
that the present Council Chair was the fifth to have  addressed the issues raised by Guatemala and 
Honduras.  The Latin American banana-producing co untries relied on banana exports to the European 
Communities to support their developing economies and to sustain the many rural communities whose 
livelihoods depended on this product.   The €176/mt tariff the EC app lied to MFN exports of bananas 
and the zero-tariff treatment it applied to AC P countries was undermining the Latin American 
banana-producing countries in their fight to ove rcome poverty, especially at a time when their 
economies were facing hard times.  As other dele gations had pointed out, the Appellate Body had 
confirmed on 26 November 2008 that the €176/mt tariff the EC had maintained since 2006 was 
incompatible with its WTO obligatio ns and had to be reduced.  On 27 July 2008 the EC and the Latin 
American supplier countries, including Panama, had concluded an agre ement on bananas, under 
which the EC agreed to reduce progressively its  tariff on bananas from €148/mt on 1 January 2009 
to €114/mt on 1 January 2016, with a view to putti ng an end to all the proceedings and complaints 
pending in the WTO.  Although the banana agre ement was to have been implemented from 
1 January 2009 regardless of the Doha Round modalities, the EC had chosen not to honour it when the 
modalities negotiations had been suspended in July 2008.  After 17 years of dispute over this matter, 
the time had come for the EC to bring its unlawful banana import régime into line with WTO rules once and for all.  The agreement on bananas was th e most appropriate way to  end this long-standing 
dispute.  His Government still accepted the bound re ductions and other legal conditions established in 
that agreement, but would not accept any amendmen ts that further reduced these reductions or 
modified the legal obligations.  The EC had said that in the present predicament the world needed 
champions of trade.  Panama agreed and hoped the EC would take the lead and inform the membership in the very near future that it had ho noured its agreement of 27 July and had remedied 
the most persistent example of non-compliance ever recorded in the history of the multilateral trading 
system. 
38. The representative of Colombia
 said it was regrettable that this matter was still on the 
Council's agenda.  The compensation element, t ogether with the other elements making up the 
complex dispute on bananas, could have been reso lved by the July 2008 ag reement.  If it was any 
solace to Honduras and Guatemala, Colombia's stat us as a substantial supplier had indeed been 
recognized with the enlargement of  the European Union from 15 to 25 members, but the EC had yet 
to compensate Colombia.  His delegation wished to reiterate its willingness to try to resolve the  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 17 
 
 
  banana problem rapidly, efficiently  and comprehensively, and invited the EC to show with concrete 
facts its willingness to do the same. 
39. The representative of Paraguay  said his delegation also wished to commend the Chair for the 
enormous effort he had made to resolve this issu e, which had been with Members for a long time.  
The Chairman could rest in the knowledge that he had done his utmost to find a solution in full 
cooperation with all of the delegati ons involved.  Apart from its solidarity with the countries of Latin 
America, Paraguay had a systemic interest in this  issue as a small exporter of agricultural products.  
Moreover, Paraguay would always take a clear position on the application of preferences to developing countries that did not take account of possible prejudice to other developing countries.  
Paraguay therefore looked forward to this matter being settled and hoped that the WTO machinery 
would be prepared to give serious consideration to these issues which affected the small exporting 
developing countries and would continue  to affect them until fairer and more equitable rules could be 
established – rules that were capable of correcting distortions of this kind. 
40. The representative of Costa Rica
 supported Guatemala and Honduras in their request that 
their rights be recognized, and urged the EC to r espond positively and resolve this dispute once and 
for all.  As to exactly how to do that, Guatemal a, Ecuador and Panama, am ong others, had already 
spoken at length in this regard, and his delegation would not go into this matter any further at the 
present time. 
41. The representative of Nicaragua  joined in supporting Guatemal a and Honduras on the issue of 
their recognition as substantial suppliers, and echoed the complaints of the Latin American countries 
with respect to the EC's non-compliance in the bana nas case.  Nicaragua was also concerned that the 
EC's position on this matter could become an accepte d practice in the organization, and one that could 
also affect other countries like Nicaragua which, owing to their size and their status as small and 
vulnerable economies, could be the next to have thei r rights trampled in the organization.  This was 
why Nicaragua wished to reiterate its support and to insist that the EC comply.  As Panama had said, 
the EU needed to do something about its record as the Member responsible for the longest period of 
non-compliance with a ruling of the Dispute Settlement Body. 
42. The representative of Cameroon  said his delegation had a very clear position on this matter 
which it consistently reaffirmed.  It had listened carefully to the statemen ts by the Latin-American 
banana-producing countries and wished to recall that  the frequently raised July agreement on bananas 
was one in which Cameroon's inte rests had been overlooked.  When ever reference was made to 
anything that harmed his country's interests, it would object.  Cameroon wished to repeat that it 
favoured an overall solution and an inclusive approach  that took into account the interests of all the 
banana-producing Members. 
43. The representative of th e European Communities  said his delegation regretted as much as the 
Chair that it had not yet been possible to resolve this matter.  The respective positions on this item 
were well known and he had nothing specific to add to the basic legal and economic parameters and 
the negotiating history.  In spite of the failure to agree on modalities in July and December 2008, the 
Community was willing and ready to find a settlement  as quickly as possible, even in the absence of 
the immediate establishment of modalities.  The Dir ector-General's suggesti on in December of an 
early outcome on modalities, including on bananas,  was a good one and could prove an important 
stepping stone towards a solution of this problem.  In any case, it showed Members a path to be pursued further, and his delegation hoped it would he lp the parties involved to find a way out of the 
present impasse.  The MFN suppliers knew the EC's  position very well, and the EC knew theirs 
equally well.  In spite of all the rhetoric surrounding this dispute, th e parties' respective positions were 
not too far apart and should be bridgeable with  some goodwill and imagination on both sides.  The 
July agreement on bananas, although it had neve r been initialled, remained clearly linked to 
modalities.  The day there were modalities, it could enter into force in its entirety.  What Members WT/GC/M/118 
Page 18  
 
  had to do now was to incorporate the fact that as of  the present, there were no modalities.  This could 
be done without unravelling the economic  benefits of what had been on the table in July.  The EC was 
ready to work constructively with the Latin Amer ican countries and hoped that very soon this item 
could be removed from the Council's agenda. 
44. The General Council took note
 of the statements and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting. 
4. Review of the exemption provided under paragraph 3 of GATT 1994 
45. The Chairman  recalled that paragraph 3(a) of GATT 1994 provided an exemption from Part II 
of GATT 1994 for measures under specific mandatory le gislation – enacted by a Member before it 
became a contracting party to GATT 1947 – which prohi bited the use, sale or lease of foreign-built or 
foreign-reconstructed vessels in commercial applicat ions between points in na tional waters or waters 
of an exclusive economic zone.  On 20 December  1994, the United States had invoked the provisions 
of paragraph 3(a) with respect to specific legisla tion that met the requirements of that paragraph.  
Paragraph 3(b) of GATT 1994 called for a review of th is exemption five years after the date of entry 
into force of the WTO Agreement, and thereafter every two years for as long as the exemption was in 
force, in order to examine whether the conditions  which created the need for the exemption still 
prevailed.  The General Council had last considered this matter at its meeting in December 2007, at 
which it had taken note that under the two-yearly cy cle provided for in paragraph 3(b) of GATT 1994, 
the next review would normally be held in 2009 .  For the purposes of the conduct of the review 
in 2009, he proposed that Members proceed in a ma nner similar to that in 2007, which was based on a 
procedure agreed by the General Council in Dece mber 2002.  Accordingly, he would invite all 
interested delegations at the present meeting to spea k for the record with regard to the review under 
the current cycle.  He would also invite interest ed delegations to submit comments and questions to 
the United States regarding the operation of the legi slation under the exemption, to which the United 
States would be invited to respond.  These statemen ts, questions and responses, together with the 
annual statistical report provided by the US unde r paragraph 3(c) of GATT 1994, would form the 
basis for the present year's review.  In keeping w ith the procedure agreed in December 2002, for the 
purposes of the review this matter would be on the agenda of subsequent Ge neral Council meetings in 
the course of 2009 as the Chairman deemed appropria te, or at the request of any Member.  The 
General Council would, furthermore, consider this ma tter again at its meeting in December 2009.  At 
that meeting, the Council would take note of the di scussions held in the cour se of the review until 
then, and take any other action it might agree on.  It  would also take note that the subsequent review 
would normally be held in 2011.  With regard to th is exemption, he invited Members to note that, as 
provided in paragraph 3(e) of GATT 1994, the exemption was without prejudice to solutions 
concerning specific aspects of the legislation cove red by this exemption negotiated in sectoral 
agreements or in other fora.  He then drew atte ntion to the annual report circulated by the United 
States in document WT/L/746. 
46. The representative of the United States  welcomed the opportunity to participate in the review 
of the exemption under paragraph 3 of GATT 1994.   The United States had continued to provide 
Members with annual statistical reports pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 3(c) of the 
exemption, including the most recent one that wa s before Members at the present meeting.  These 
reports provided detailed annual reporting of vessel orders and deliveries from US shipyards as 
required by paragraph 3(c) of GATT 1994.  Recognizi ng that there were differing views on the nature 
of this review, his delegation again stood ready to or ganize informal consultations in which interested 
delegations would be free to ask questions and discuss issues without prejudice to their national 
positions.  The United States also stood ready to respond to questions put to it on a more formal basis. 
47. The representative of th e European Communities  said his delegation wished to underline once 
again the Community's concerns with the exempti on.  The prevailing situation had negative economic  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 19 
 
 
  consequences for the EU shipbuilding industry by closing the US market for ships, in certain 
segments of which – for example, passenger ferries  – European shipbuilders had a strong interest.  
This longstanding impediment to trade was all th e more awkward at a ti me when Members were 
trying to further liberalize trade in goods and ser vices.  The Community sincerely hoped that the 
present review would be meaningful and substantial.  It should not become simply a recurring point 
on the Council's agenda. 
48. The representative of Hong Kong, China  said his delegation's systemic interest in this agenda 
item remained unchanged.  Its concerns stem med from its view that the exemption under 
Paragraph 3(a) of GATT 1994 was a major derogation from the fundamental principles of the WTO and that it had been perpetuated for nearly 15 year s after the establishment of the WTO.  Hong Kong, 
China was also mindful of the exemption's indirect  linkage with the United States' position regarding 
the services negotiations on maritime transport ser vices under the DDA.  While his delegation had not 
been encouraged by the outcome of previous re views and, in the light of experience, was not 
particularly hopeful for the present review, it stood read y, as in the past, to pa rticipate in the ensuing 
review with an open mind and in a constructive ma nner in order to examine whether the conditions 
that created the need for the exemption still prevailed. 
49. The representative of Japan
 said his country appreciated that the United States had made a 
response in writing to Japan's questionnaire before the last meeting of the previous review in 
December 2007, and that the United States had provided th e latest statistical data in WT/L/746.  Japan 
attached great importance to the review of the ex emption and believed that Members should conduct 
an effective examination from various points of vi ew, with regard to the response and the data 
provided.  Japan hoped that the current review would be conducted in an  appropriate manner under 
the Chair's leadership, so Members could examine in detail whether or not the circumstances still 
existed that justified the continuation of an ex emption that was a deviation from fundamental WTO 
principles. 
50. The representative of Norway  said this was an important issue for Norway, as the waiver in 
essence made it impossible for it to sell ships to the United States.  Like Hong Kong, China and 
others, her delegation had participated actively in the review of this waiver on earlier occasions and 
intended to do the same in 2009.  However, she w as saddened that this matter had not been solved 
during the years she had been absent from Geneva, a nd that she had to make more or less the same 
intervention at the present meeting that she used to make in her former position ten years earlier.  Her 
delegation thanked the United States for the statis tical information in WT/L/746, which would be 
reviewed carefully.  Regarding the conduct of  the review, it should focus on the salient  points of 
paragraph 3(b), which was the examination of whet her the conditions which created the need for the 
exemption still prevailed.  Members needed to move beyond the point of discussing only the 
statistical information submitte d under paragraph 3(c) and address also the conditions for the 
exemption.  Regarding the next practical steps in  the process, Norway was prepared to go along with 
the Chairman's suggestion. 
51. The representative of Chile  said that under the previous item, Members had discussed the 
longest-running dispute in the history of the GATT/WTO, and they were now discussing the longest and perhaps the most absurd exemption under the GA TT/WTO system.  As in previous reviews, Chile 
wished to state its trade and systemic interest in th is exemption and its wish to participate both in the 
review itself and, as Norway had suggested, to assess the conditions that made the continuation of this 
exemption necessary.  Chile also wished to than k the United States for providing the possibility of 
organizing consultations to discuss this exemption. 
52. The representative of Australia
 said his delegation had taken part  in previous reviews of this 
exemption and on those occasions had expressed Austra lia's commercial and systemic concerns about WT/GC/M/118 
Page 20  
 
  its continued operation.  His delegation did not ha ve any specific questions to raise at the present 
stage, but wished to indicate its inte ntion to participate in the review. 
53. The representative of China
 said his country shared the concerns expressed by the previous 
speakers and wished to participate in the review a nd to know more about whether the conditions that 
had created the need for this exemption still prevaile d.  China also had some concerns, particularly 
given the current financial and econom ic crisis, with respect to the current US stimulus package and 
its "buy American" component, which had a tone similar to this exemption.  Although one could 
argue the legitimacy of these kinds of measures, th ey had a negative impact on actual trade in goods 
and services, and also gave the wrong signal in the cu rrent fight to control th e economic and financial 
crises.  For these reasons, China wished to have a meaningful review of the continuance of this 
exemption. 
54. The representative of Korea  said his delegation also had systemic concerns with this issue.  
As one of the largest shipbuilding nations, it also  had commercial concerns.  Korea hoped that the 
current year's review would not be merely part of recurring business, and that at the December 2009 
Council meeting a meaningful examination would be  made as to whether the conditions that had 
created the need for this waiver still prevailed. 
55. The General Council took note  of the statements and agreed  to revert to this item at a future 
meeting. 
5. Appointment of the next Director-General 
56. The Chairman  recalled that, under the Procedures for the Appointment of Directors-General 
agreed in 2002 (WT/L/509), the process for the appoi ntment of the next Director-General had begun 
on 1 December 2008 and Members had had until 31 D ecember to nominate candidates.  In keeping 
with the procedures, he had also informed Me mbers in a communication dated 4 November 2008 of 
the candidature of Mr Lamy, the current Director-G eneral, who had notified him before the start of 
the process of his intention to seek reappointment for a further term.  As Members were aware, by the 
close of the nomination period of 31 December, no fu rther candidatures had been received.  Under the 
procedures, candidates were normally to be pr ovided three months following the end of the 
nomination period to make themselves known to Memb ers and to engage in discussions on the issues 
facing the organization.  The following two months were then to be devoted to narrowing the field of candidates through a process of consultations and u ltimately arriving at a choice for appointment.  
The process was to conclude with a meeting of th e General Council convened not later than three 
months prior to the expiry of the incumbent's term , at which a decision to appoint a new DG had to be 
taken.  In the present case, a decision on the appoint ment of the next DG had to be taken not later 
than 31 May.  The several stages of this process had clearly been designed for a situation where 
Members were faced with an initial field of more than one candidate.  In his consultations it had 
become apparent that, while respecting the ag reed procedures, Members acknowledged the unique 
nature of the present situation, where there was only one, unopposed candidate who was the 
incumbent Director-General.  It was clear from his consultations that there was no opposition to 
Mr Lamy's reappointment and, in fact, widespread support for it.  Members had told him they looked 
forward to an opportunity to hear, in accordance with paragraphs 8 and 14  of the procedures, a 
presentation from the Director-General on his vision for the WTO, followed by a question and answer 
session and an opportunity for discussion with Members.  It had also been noted that this exchange 
would itself have no legal effect.  Accordingly, a special meeting of the General Council for this 
exercise would be convened at a suitably early da te, and Members had indicated their willingness to 
expedite the process so that the reappoint ment could be confir med before 31 May. 
57. The representative of Tanzania
, on behalf of the LDCs , expressed appreciation for the Chair's 
leadership and guidance in the selection process a nd commended him for coordinating this process.   WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 21 
 
 
  The LDCs had learned with great pleasure that the current Director-General had expressed interest in 
reappointment for a further four-year term and that  he was the only candidate.  The latter could be 
interpreted in two ways:  either Mr Lamy had done very well in his term, or the position of WTO 
Director-General was so demanding that it was a deterrent to many potential candidates.  The LDCs' acceptance of Mr Lamy's reappointment was not guided by the fact that he was the only candidate, but 
rather reflected their belief that th is position called for an individual of impeccable commitment to the 
course and objectives of the WTO, and of strong, pr incipled convictions and integrity to withstand 
any political pressure – a person of global vision, including a clear understanding of the development 
interests and concerns of poor countries, particular ly the LDCs.  Mr Lamy had aptly demonstrated 
these qualities during his term.  For this reason, the Group supported his reappointment.  The 
confirmation process should be expedited, without deviating from the established rules or setting any 
undesirable precedent.  Since this was an appointment  for a new term, and in line with paragraph 14 
of the Procedures, Mr Lamy should appear before  the Council to elaborate his vision for the WTO and 
his plan for advancing and successfully concluding th e DDA.  In concluding, he wished to express the 
LDCs' concern about the current financial crisis and its possibl e detrimental effects on their 
economies due to reduced exports, particularly to th e developed world, and decline in foreign direct 
investment.  This crisis was coming when the LD Cs were already facing difficulties in coping with 
food shortages and spiralling fuel prices in the world market.  It might lead countries to resort to age-old protectionist tendencies that would inf lict even more damage on LDCs.  The Group was 
anxious that the policies to be developed in the multilateral trading system would not work against 
developing countries, particularly LDCs.  It was keen to see the Doha Round, along with the promised 
development content, conclude as soon as possible. 
58. The General Council took note
 of the statements. 
6. CWR building renovation project – Statement by the Director-General 
59. The Director-General  said he wished to inform Member s of the progress on the plans to 
renovate and expand the WTO headquar ters.  The overall plan, of a total of 130 million Swiss francs, 
had four interrelated parts:  (i) the renovation of  the CWR building;  (ii) the creation of a new central 
lobby and meeting room complex in the two interi or courtyards;  (iii) the construction of a new 
building in the south parking;  and (iv) a new s ecurity perimeter around this campus, with improved 
access controls and traffic flow for vehicles.  The en tire project would take four years, with a target 
completion date by the end of 2012.  The first stag e of the project was now underway in the south part 
of the CWR.  He wished to provide some details of what had already been achieved and a picture of 
some of the milestones that lay ahead.  Starting with the renovation of CWR – which included the complete refurbishment of meeting rooms, offices and common areas, and also the modernization of the building's infrastructure, such as plumbing, wi ring, heating and elevators – the Swiss Parliament 
had already approved the funding for this part of  the project, which would be staged in eight 
successive sectors.  There had already been and would still be some inconvenience for staff and 
delegates, and he asked all Members for their pa tience and understanding during this four-year period. 
60. The intra-muros renovation comprised the refurbis hment of the two courtyards in the CWR.  
The north courtyard would be enclosed under a four-story high atrium roof, and would become the central lobby.  The south courtyard would become  a new conference area with three large meeting 
rooms that could be easily reconfigured for different types of uses.  The intra-muros work was 
scheduled to be completed in two stages.  The s outh courtyard meeting rooms would be ready by the 
spring of 2011.  The north courtyard lobby would be  completed with the rest of the renovation work 
by the end of 2012.  Regarding the new building, he  was pleased to say that an open international 
architectural competition for a new annex buildin g was underway.  The results of the competition 
would be made public within the next weeks.  The competition had been open to architects from all 
Member countries.  A jury composed of Secretar iat officials, the Budget Committee Chair, Swiss 
officials and independent architects had carried out an objective, anonymous review of more than 120 WT/GC/M/118 
Page 22  
 
  proposed designs.  The main objective of th is project was to have a functional, 
environmentally-friendly building that respected its unique natural environment.  For local residents 
who benefited from the park, it would be a mode st presence, and yet it would house 300 staff in a 
cost-efficient, adaptable office bu ilding with an underground parking for 200 vehicles.  According to 
the current schedule, construction was to begin in early 2011, with a completion date at the end of 
2012.  He also wished to mention that some Secr etariat staff were now occupying the new temporary 
annex on the Chemin des Mines, which housed nearly 300 Secretariat staff and certain key installations, such as the WTO print shop and info rmatics hardware.  This annex would remain 
available to the WTO, courtesy of the Swiss hosts, until the completion of the new building.  He also 
wished to mention that a special page on the Me mbers' Website dedicated to the renovation project 
would be opened in order to provide regular updates and information on the entire project. 
61. The General Council took note
 of the statement. 
7. WTO Pension Plan – Election of members to  the Management Board – Proposal by the 
Chairman of the General Council 
62. The Chairman  recalled that Article 4(a) of the Regulations of the WTO Pension Plan 
provides, inter alia,  for the election by the General Council of  a Chairman, four members and four 
alternates to the Management Board of the Pens ion Plan, each for a three-year term.  In a 
communication circulated to delegations in doc ument WT/GC/W/597, he had indicated that two 
members previously elected to the Management  Board by the General Council were no longer 
available to serve on the Board, and that th e Council had to decide on their replacement.  
Accordingly, in his communication he had proposed the names of two  representatives who had kindly agreed to have their names put forward for election as members.  He had also invited delegations to submit any comments they might  have regarding the proposed nominations by 
30 January.  As he had not received any comments re garding the proposed nominations, he wished to 
propose that the General Council elect Mr Schneider  (Germany) and Mrs Stylianou (Australia) to 
serve as members on the Management Board of th e WTO Pension Plan for the remainder of the 
current Board's term, i.e. until May 2011. 
63. The General Council took note
 of the statement and so agreed . 
8. Appointment of officers to WTO bodies 
64. The Chairman  recalled that, in accordance with the Gu idelines for Appointment of Officers to 
WTO Bodies approved by the General Council in December 2002 (WT/L/510), he and his colleagues, 
Mr Matus (Chile), the serving Chair of the Disput e Settlement Body, and Mr Noor (Malaysia), the 
former Chair of the General C ouncil, had conducted consultations with delegations on a slate of 
names for the appointment of Chairs to the bodies lis ted in Groups 1, 2, 4 and 5 in the Annex to the 
Guidelines.  At the outset, he wished to thank M essrs Matus and Noor for their assistance, which had 
been very valuable to him and, he was certain, al so to all Members.  They had consulted delegations 
both individually and in groups, including throu gh group coordinators.  These consultations had 
included an informal open-ended Head s-of-Delegation meeting on 26 January. 
65. He was pleased to be able to inform delegati ons that, on the basis of these consultations, there 
was a consensus on the following slate of names: 
General Council H.E. Mr. Mario MATUS (Chile) 
Dispute Settlement Body H.E. Mr. John GERO (Canada) 
Trade Policy Review Body H.E. Dr. István MAJOR (Hungary)  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 23 
 
 
  Council for Trade in Goods H.E. Mrs. Elin Østebø JOHANSEN (Norway) 
Council for Trade in Services H.E. Mr. Yonov Frederick AGAH (Nigeria) 
Council for TRIPS H.E. Ms. Karen TAN (Singapore) 
Committee on Trade and 
  Development H.E. Mr. Shree Baboo Chekitan SERVANSING 
(Mauritius) 
Committee on Balance-of- 
  Payments Restrictions H.E. Mr. Arsene M. BALIHUTA (Uganda) 
Committee on Budget, Finance 
  and  Administration H.E. Mrs. Marie-Claire SWÄRD CAPRA (Sweden) 
Committee on Trade and  
  Environment H.E. Mr. Bozkurt ARAN (Turkey) 
Committee on Regional Trade  
  Agreements Mr. Detlev BRAUNS (Germany) 
Working Group on Trade, Debt and  
  Finance Mr. Martin GLASS (Hong Kong, China) 
Working Group on Trade and  
  Transfer of Technology H.E. Mr. Kwabena BAAH-DUODU (Ghana) 
 
66. Appointments for these bodies would be for one year as usual, in keeping with the general 
rule in the Guidelines.  These appointments would, of course, be made formally by the WTO bodies 
concerned at their subsequent meetings in 2009. 
67. The General Council took note  of the statement and of the consensus on the slate of names for 
the appointment of officers to the bodies mentioned above. 
68. The Chairman , on behalf of the General Council, expressed sincere appreciation to the 
outgoing Chairpersons of all WTO bodies for their dedicated work in chairing these bodies during the 
past year.  He then recalled that, in keeping with  Paragraph 7.3 of the Guidelines for Appointment of 
Officers to WTO Bodies, the out going Chairpersons of the Council for Trade in Goods and the 
Council for Trade in Services had normally to conduc t consultations to select Chairpersons for the 
bodies established under their respective Councils.  Para graph 7.3 of the Guidelines also provided that 
these Chairs should announce the start of their r espective consultation processes at the February 
General Council, and work in close coordination in order to ensure the efficiency of the process and 
the balance mentioned in Paragraph 3.3 of the Guidelines. 
69. Mrs Tan (Singapore), Chair of  the Council for Trade in Goods , informed Members that, in 
accordance with the Guidelines, she would be starting consultations for the appointment of 
chairpersons to the subsidiary bodies of the Council for Trade in Goods.  She would be carrying out 
this process with a view to proposing and agreeing on a balanced slate of names at the next meeting of 
the Goods Council, scheduled for 24 March.  She inte nded to make sufficient time available to meet 
with any interested Members and to hear their vi ews and suggestions, and would be sending a fax to 
all Heads of Delegation the following day indicating he r availability for this purpose.  Following this, 
she would conduct further consultations as necessary.  In order to ensure the e fficiency of the process 
and the balance mentioned in the Guidelines, she wo uld work in coordination with the Chair of the 
Services Council. 
70. Mr Van Meeuwen (Belgium), Chair of the Council for Trade in Services , informed Members 
that in accordance with the Guidelines, he would also  be starting consultations for the appointment of WT/GC/M/118 
Page 24  
 
  chairpersons to the subsidiary bodies to the Servi ces Council.  He would be consulting with a view to 
arriving at a proposed slate of names of chairpersons for 2009 that would enjoy the wide support of the membership.  He hoped to announce the slate of  names at the next formal meeting of the Council 
for Trade in Services which would probably take pl ace during the second half of March.  In order to 
ensure the balance of the slate, as mentioned in th e Guidelines, he would be consulting with the Chair 
of the Goods Council. 
71. The General Council took note
 of the statements. 
9. Netherlands – Seizure of generic medicines in transit from India to Brazil 
72. The representative of Brazil , speaking under "Other Business ", said that on 4 December 2008, 
the customs authorities of the Netherlands had sei zed a cargo of generic medicines en route from 
India to Brazil.  The cargo consisted of 500 k ilos of losartan potasssium, an active pharmaceutical 
ingredient used in the production of medicines for arterial hypertension.  The substance had been in 
the process of being traded between an Indian co mpany and a Brazilian impor ter.  Apparently, the 
decision had been motivated by an administrative re quest lodged by a third company, which allegedly 
held the patent on losartan potasssium in the Neth erlands.  To Brazil's knowledge, the request had 
been based on a claim of violation of patent rights pursuant to provisions set out in the EC Council Regulation 1383 of 22 July 2003 and in the Dutc h Patent Act of 1995.  Th is Regulation concerned 
customs actions against goods suspected of infringing intellectual property rights and the measures to be taken against goods found to have infringed such  rights.  The cargo had been held back by the 
Dutch authorities for 36 days, after which it had been re leased to return to India.  As a result of the 
Dutch authorities' actions, the medi cines had never reached Brazil.  The measure taken by the Dutch 
authorities clearly violated the freedom of transit enshrined in Article V of the GATT 1947 under  which only very exceptional circumstances warranted r estrictions.  Brazil was not aware of any such 
circumstance in the present case.  The decision to impe de the transit of a cargo of generic medicines – 
which was not headed for the Dutch market – was unacceptable and set a dangerous precedent.  
Worse still, there were indications th at this was not an isolated case. 
73. Trade in generic medicines was perfectly legal from the intellectual property point of view.  
Nevertheless, as Brazil understood it, the EC regulation empowered customs authorities to interfere 
with the transit of generic medici nes.  The concept of generic shoul d not be confused with counterfeit 
or pirated.  Generic medicines were not substandard  or illegal.  They simply did not enjoy patent 
protection in the relevant market.  In Brazil, the falsification of medicines was considered a heinous 
crime.  Under the TRIPS Agreement, the medicine s seized were generic under the law of the market 
in which they were meant to be commercialized.  In the present case, they were generic in terms of 
Brazilian and Indian law, as Brazil understood it.  Whether or not the medicines were generic under 
the law of the country of transit was an irrelevant question.  What was not irrelevant was the decision 
taken by the Dutch customs authorities to block the transit, and thus impede the access of 
hypertension patients in Brazil to safe and price-co mpetitive generic medicines.  In Brazil and other 
countries, hypertension was a common but serious diseas e, often leading to death.  Irrespective of the 
value or volume of the cargo involved, Brazil was gravely concerned with the setting of a precedent 
for extraterritorial enforcement of IP rights.  Attempts to extend the rights granted by patents beyond national borders had critical systemic implicati ons.  They affronted fundamental canons of the 
multilateral trading system, in particular the well-es tablished principle of territoriality, a fundamental 
pillar of the international intellectual property regime .  Extraterritorial enforcement of patent rights 
could not be reconciled with the terms of the Doha  Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health.  That 
Declaration stated that the TRIPS Agreement "can  and should be interpreted and implemented in a 
manner supportive of WTO Members' right to protect public health and … to promote access to 
medicines for all".  The same declaration also established that each provision of the TRIPS 
Agreement shall be read in the light of the objectives and principles of the Agreement.  In this sense, 
Brazil recalled that the protection of public health and the promotion of the public interest were still  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 25 
 
 
  part of the fundamental principles of the TRIPS Agreement.  The undue interference of the Dutch 
authorities with the transit of generic medicines migh t have other serious systemic consequences.  It 
could undermine the ability of Members to address pub lic health needs by means of cross-licensing 
arrangements.  He recalled that Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health 
represented a much-needed and long-awaited respon se to the specific situation of countries with 
insufficient or no manufacturing capacity in the pharm aceutical sector.  The system under Paragraph 6 
permitted a Member without manufacturing capacity to import medicines from other Members under a compulsory cross-licensing arrangement.  He asked  what would happen to the Doha Declaration on 
TRIPS and Public Health and, in particular, to th e Paragraph 6 system, if the denial of transit to 
generic medicines became a systematic and widespr ead practice, or if countries started to create 
impediments to the legitimate trade of generic medicines based on the wrongful allegation that it 
violated national patent rights.  Trade in generi c medicines would be rendered virtually impossible. 
74. Brazil was fully committed to intellectual propert y protection.  It was a founding Member of 
the Paris Convention, and Brazilian legislation provided fair and adequate protection to IP 
rights-holders.  Brazil also believed that a functioni ng and effective international IP system could be 
built only on the solid basis of a fair balance between private and public interests.  This was the very 
foundation of the TRIPS Agreement.  The protection of intellectual property could not supersede the 
protection of more fundamental values, such as th e protection of life and the right to promote public 
health.  The application of enforcement procedur es to goods in transit was being advocated in the 
World Customs Organization (WCO) and in the Wo rld Health Organization (WHO).  In the WCO, 
within the Secure Working Group, some countries were pushing for the adoption of standards that 
would give customs the authority to seize goods in transit that were suspected of infringing IP rights.  
Similarly, in the WHO, the Impact Initiative clai med that national legislation should provide for 
enforcement procedures over goods in transit.  Firs t, neither the WCO nor the WHO were adequate 
fora for discussing IP rights enforcement.  In the WHO, the focus should be on the quality, safety and 
efficacy of medicines, as well as on the issue of access.  The WCO should concentrate on developing 
methodologies to enhance customs' performance rather  than venturing into TRIPS-plus norm-setting.  
Second, interfering with the freedom of transit for the sake of enforcing IP rights violated trade disciplines negotiated by Members.  IP rights c ould and should be enforced in a Member's own 
market.  Such enforcement, however, could not reach  goods that were not intended for that market.  
Brazil had already expressed its concern to the Ne therlands.  In light of the above, Brazil would 
appreciate the Netherlands and/or the EC clarifying the circumstances and legal basis of the decision 
taken by the Dutch authorities which had led to the refusal of transit for generic intellectual 
property-free medicines.  Brazil also expected the Netherlands and the EC to bring their legislation 
into conformity with multilateral trade disciplines so  that episodes such as this no longer occurred. 
75. The representative of India
 said this was a very important issue which had deep systemic 
implications for all.  In the past few mont hs, Dutch customs authorities had seized several 
consignments of generic drugs of Indian companies on grounds of alleged IP violations.  Seizure of 
the consignment of losartan potasssium in December 2008 was one such case of what was emerging as a clear pattern.  Such instances caused India gr eat concern due to their systemic and far-reaching 
implications.  In addition to going against the spir it of a rule-based trading system and impeding free 
trade, such acts represented a distorted use of th e international IP system and circumscribed TRIPS 
flexibilities.  Repeat of such actions could have an  impact on exporters' choice of transit routes, which 
could affect the economics of trade in pharmaceutic al products, and consequent ly have a deleterious 
effect on access to essential drugs and public he alth budgets of recipient countries.  Losartan 
potassium, used in the treatment of hypertension, was a perfectly IP-legitimate generic drug in both 
India and Brazil, and its trade was also perfectly  legitimate.  The WTO rule-based system provided 
for freedom of transit by the most economical and convenient routes and without unnecessary delays 
and restrictions.  The act of seizure by the Dutch authorities was therefore a denial of the rule-based 
system Members sought to build and strengthen in the WTO.  The concept of territoriality was a keystone in the edifice of the TRIPS Agreement.  There were no indications that the drug WT/GC/M/118 
Page 26  
 
  consignment in question had been meant for the mark ets of the EC.  Seizure, and initiating procedures 
for destruction of such consignments, violated this  key principle.  Members had always strived for a 
balance between public health concerns and protec tion and enforcement of IPRs.  The Decisions on 
public heath were a valuable part of the WTO acquis a nd needed to be adhered to in letter and spirit.  
It was ironic that while, on one hand, the WTO ha d taken steps to promote access to affordable 
medicines and remove obstacles to proper use of TRIPS flexibilities, on the other hand some 
Members sought to negate the same by seizing drug consignments in transit.  The importance of 
generic drugs and their essentiality might vary in in verse proportion to the level of development of a 
country.  Therefore, high importance was attached to generic drugs in developing countries, and 
particularly in the LDCs.  Barriers to legitimate trade of generic drugs w ould seriously impair the 
efforts of organizations like Medecins Sans Frontie res, the Clinton Foundation, the Bill and Melinda 
Gates Foundation and many othe r organizations engaged in pr oviding medicines and improving 
public health in the least-developed parts of the world. 
76. He also wished to draw attention to another trend that was acquiring huge dimensions – the 
effort to implement the protection and enforcement of IPRs in a maximalist manner and thereby upset 
the delicate balance between rights of IPR holde rs and the public policy objectives under the TRIPS 
Agreement.  A coordinated approach was being w itnessed in several interna tional fora, such as the 
WCO, WHO, Universal Postal Union (UPU), etc. to promote the IP maximalist agenda.  India also noted with dismay the efforts by some Members to  link safe and efficacious, but low-cost, generics 
with counterfeit medicines, which was essentially an IP R issue.  There was an attempt to enlarge the 
definition of counterfeit beyond its definition in th e TRIPS Agreement, in order to set maximalist 
enforcement norms, and to include TRIPS-plus provisi ons in RTAs.  These were subtle and concerted 
ways of circumscribing the flexibilities of the TRIPS Agreement.  They also ran counter to the spirit 
of the TRIPS Agreement, which w as a minimum standards ag reement.  This was certainly counter to 
the understanding given to developing countries when  the TRIPS Agreement was being negotiated.  
India attached the highest importance to protection and enforcement of IPRs in accordance with the 
TRIPS Agreement.  However, it did not see th e Agreement as divorced from the objectives and 
principles set out in its Articles 7 and 8.  Efforts to enshrine new, maximalist TRIPS-plus provisions 
in other fora would seriously undermine the de licate balance in the TRIPS Agreement and raise 
systemic issues.  Regarding the seizure of various  drug consignments by the Dutch authorities, India 
had raised this issue in the Council with the exp ectation that the EC would urgently review the 
relevant regulations and the acti ons of the national authorities based  on such regulations, and bring 
them in conformity with the letter and spirit of the TRIPS Agreement and the rule-based WTO 
system. 
77. The representative of Peru
 expressed concern over at the events recounted by Brazil and India 
which, regrettably, were neither isolated nor unique.  Peru too has been affected by recent actions in 
which shipments of generic pharmaceuticals had b een detained in transit countries, although the 
products were perfectly legal in the countries of or igin and destination and complied fully with the 
provisions of the TRIPS Agreement, the instrument that governed intellectual property matters in this 
organization.  He would not repeat what previous speakers had already said, but wished to emphasize 
that actions of this kind, which were inconsistent with international intellectual property law, were a 
source of acute concern for his Government because they undermined and weakened that law.  Peru 
could not accept that generic pharmaceuticals – medicines which were lawful but did not enjoy 
protection under the intellectual pr operty protection system – should be assimilated to or confused 
with pharmaceuticals that were counterfeit or fell short of the quality standards established for the 
purpose of protection.  Public health protection w as too serious a matter to be invoked lightly or in 
haste.  His delegation was confident that the Nether lands would be able to account in full, citing the 
relevant provisions of internati onal law, for the actions carried out by its customs authorities at the 
request not of the Dutch sanitary authorities, but of  pharmaceutical firms with commercial interests in 
the country.  WT/GC/M/118 
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  78. The representative of Ecuador  expressed support for the statements by Brazil and India on 
this matter.  This unfortunate incident – which, as Peru had noted, was not the first of its kind – 
undermined the basic principles of health in deve loping countries and added to the tactics employed 
by developed countries in the framework of the World Intellectual Property Organization, WHO, 
WCO and even of the WTO to seek to ensure th e mandatory implementation of the principles of 
extraterritoriality and free transit in respect of in tellectual property rights.  This type of action was 
detrimental to the consolidation of positions in re lation to intellectual property issues achieved in the 
Doha negotiations and forced Memb ers to reflect on their positions. 
79. The representative of Egypt , on behalf of the African Group , said the statements by Brazil and 
India raised concerns of a systemic nature that demanded a follow up by Members at a later stage. 
80. The representative of South Africa  added his delegation's voice to those of other developing 
countries expressing concern with the recent action by the EC to prevent the transit of generic drugs 
from India to Brazil.  He recalled that South Africa had played a significant role in the WTO 
negotiations on the Paragraph 6 flexibilities on TRIPS a nd public health.  It viewed with great concern 
that the implementation of this Agreement was bei ng undermined by the actions of some Members.  
Generic drugs were an important part of the effo rts to provide affordable medicines to developing 
countries, and efforts in other fora that attempted to frustrate the implementation of the Decision on 
the Implementation of Paragraph 6 should be discouraged by Members.   His delegation urged the EC 
to provide an explanation for the a pparent inconsistency of its actions  with its declared commitment to 
provide affordable medicines for public health purposes under Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration 
on TRIPS and Public Health. 
81. The representative of Bolivia  joined in the concern expr essed over the case described by 
Brazil and India.  Bolivia had hoped that this misu se of international intellectual property legislation 
was an isolated event.  However, after hearing ot her statements, it only remained for her delegation to 
request that the EC's action and legislation which had le d to such incidents be modified so as to put an 
end to this type of case.  Bolivia was also c oncerned about the campaign in the WHO, WCO, UPU 
and other organizations which sought to implem ent TRIPS measures without having recourse to the 
WTO, thereby upsetting the delicate balances that ha d been achieved.  This was a systemic problem 
involving specific cases that were the cause of great concern not only to Bolivia, but also to Members 
in general, that would have to be remedied. 
82. The representative of Argentina  thanked India and Brazil for bringing this matter to the 
attention of the General Council.  Like others, Ar gentina shared the concerns of Brazil and India 
concerning the seizure of a shipment of generic medicine in transit through the Netherlands from 
India and bound for Brazil.  Decisions to adopt measur es of this kind, which contradicted Article V of 
GATT 1994, should take particular account of the need to facilitate the access of countries, in 
particular developing countries, to medicine and h ealth.  The actions described did not appear to be 
consistent with either the spirit of the TRIPS Agreement or the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS 
Agreement and Public Health.  Given that this s ituation could have a systemic impact and set a 
dangerous precedent for trade in generic medicines, Argentina asked the EC to clarify the legality of 
the measures under the TRIPS Agreement and inform  Members whether the provisions under which 
the Netherlands had adopted these measur es had been duly notified to the WTO. 
83. The representative of Cuba  shared the grave systemic concerns raised by Brazil and India.  
Cuba noted with the utmost concern a tende ncy among some developed Members to assume 
unilaterally a role as international customs police or  international intellectual property police, as well 
as attempts to establish or authenticate that role  through other international bodies set up for other 
purposes or with different fundamental mandates.  A nother cause of concern was the extraterritorial 
application of national laws, which was contrary to th e general principles of international law.  It also 
contravened the principles of international law pert aining to sovereignty, sovereign equality and the WT/GC/M/118 
Page 28  
 
  sovereignty of States.  Actions such as those unde r discussion were likewise clearly at odds with the 
principles of freedom of transit, which were le gally binding in the WTO Agreements.  Cuba was 
further concerned at the potential systemic adverse ef fects of extraterritorial unilateral actions such as 
those reported, for example, on the validity and application of the TRIPS Agreement, the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public  Health and the Amendment of the TRIPS 
Agreement, and on the application of the WTO Agre ements in general.  Actions such as these set a 
negative and dangerous precedent for the internati onal transport of goods, intellectual property rules 
and trade in general.  Cuba hoped that the author ities of the country in question would give a proper 
explanation to the countries concerned and provide suitable compensation. 
84. The representative of Nigeria
 thanked India and Brazil for their information concerning the 
seizure of the consignments of generic drugs.  As  a developing country that had endeavoured to 
benefit from the dividends of the D oha Declaration on TRIPS and Public  Health, Nigeria believed that 
Members should ensure that they adhered to the lette r and spirit of that Declaration.  The importance 
of generic drugs for countries with no capacity to  manufacture pharmaceutical products could not be 
over-emphasized.  In the same vein, Nigeria urge d Members to avoid taking measures that would 
adversely affect the freedom of transit by the most  convenient and economic routes.  Like Brazil and 
South Africa, Nigeria encouraged the Netherlands and/ or the EC to clarify the circumstances and legal 
bases in the present case.  Nigeri a expected the balance between public health concerns and 
enforcement of IP rights to be respected, and ther efore urged Members to ensure that the enforcement 
of IP rights was not used to impede legitimate trade. 
85. The representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela  joined those who had supported 
the concerns raised by Brazil and India.  He woul d not repeat the arguments already made, but wished 
to put on record that his country agreed with the concerns expressed, which seemed to be systemic 
and which were evidenced by practi ces such as those just reported.  First, these practices constituted 
arbitrary and unilateral measures outside trade rul es.  Second, they set a dangerous precedent for 
international trade, as Brazil had rightly said.  Thir d, given that these practices were not backed up by 
concrete trade measures, they appeared to be  geared more towards conditioning state policy 
decision-making, which was even more serious when dealing with aspects related to public health.  
Fourth, as India had correctly pointed out, this type  of situation led to the arbitrary and unilateral 
extension of enforcement measures, as had been r ecently witnessed in other organizations, such as the 
WCO and the UPU.  In the current times of crusades against protectionism, it would be interesting to see how the protectionist effect of the misuse of intellectual property rights to undermine the 
sovereign decisions of states concerning their public policies could be studied. 
86. The representative of Indonesia
 expressed his country's concern ov er the seizure of this transit 
shipment and sought clarification from the EC on th e issue.  Indonesia had always been committed to 
the enforcement of the TRIPS Agreement, which cont ained a balance of rights and obligations for the 
protection of IP.  Enforcement of IP protecti on, however, should be in line with the TRIPS 
Agreement, and applied in a manner conducive to social and economic development.  Members had 
the responsibility not to enforce a standard of prot ection that amounted to an abuse and violated the 
TRIPS Agreement.  In the case of the Indian tran sit shipment, his delegation sought clarification from 
the EC to prove that the Dutch authorities did no t violate any WTO rules.  The TRIPS Agreement 
required that Members not extend border measures to transactions other than importation, when such 
extension resulted in enforcing rights that did not exist in the importing country.  Members certainly 
could not apply measures against transportation of gene ric drugs which, by definition, were already in 
the public domain.  This act would be  detrimental to the international effort of providing better access 
to medicine and would create barriers to legitimate international trade. 
87. The representative of Burkina Faso  expressed his delegation's concern, as a country which 
consumed generic drugs but lacked the means to  manufacture them, about abuses that could put a 
brake on the effective provision of treatment to its pe ople.  In this respect, Burkina Faso endorsed the  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 29 
 
 
  statements by Brazil and India and requested clarif ication so that developing countries which needed 
and consumed these products were  not adversely affected by measures that prevented them from 
providing proper care for their people. 
88. The representative of Thailand  said the case presented by India and Brazil required some 
attention.  His delegation had concerns as to how the shipment had been seized.  In particular, it 
believed that generic drugs were essential for the he alth of the poor in developing countries.  The 
flexibility provided in the TRIPS Agreement facilitat ed access to health care and also to the drugs 
available.  As the seizure had been effected without  careful examination, it was not clear it had a legal 
basis.  Nevertheless, his delegation sought furt her clarification from the EC or the Netherlands. 
89. The representative of China  said his country had systemic concerns over the matter raised by 
Brazil and India.  It not only affected normal transit trade, but also represented a departure from the 
principle of territoriality of the international in tellectual property system.  The Decision by the 
General Council on the Implementa tion of Paragraph 6 of the D oha Declaration on the TRIPS 
Agreement and Public Health had been a great achie vement to meet the demand for urgently-needed 
pharmaceuticals in the developing countries of Afri ca, Asia and Latin America.  It should be 
implemented by Members.  China therefore urged the Netherlands to provide further clarification, to 
take measures to implement faithfully the TRIP S Agreement and to refrain from actions of 
extraterritorial enforcement of patent rights. 
90. The representative of Pakistan  added his delegation's voice to the grave concerns expressed 
over a matter that could be seen as yet another pr otectionist action and back-tracking from the TRIPS 
Agreement.  All developing countries had agreed to sign and implement the TRIPS Agreement in 
anticipation of certain fairness in internationa l trade regarding IPRs.  The application of 
extraterritoriality of IPRs in the present case was quite alarming for developing countries which were 
producing mostly generic drugs.  This was also ag ainst the spirit of the Doha Declaration on TRIPS 
and Public Health.  Pakistan requested Members to respect the TRIPS provisions and maintain a fair system through multilateral negotiations. 
91. The representative of Israel
 noted the importance of the export of generic medicine for Israel's 
overall trade and industry.  At the present time, his de legation merely wished to register its interest in 
this important issue, and would appreciate receiving information and clarification from the EC and the 
Netherlands. 
92. The representative of Paraguay  said his delegation had listened with great attention to the 
statements by Brazil, India and others on this matt er.  This issue was new to Paraguay and had yet to 
be studied in depth.  However, Paraguay wish ed to stress the enormous importance which, as a 
landlocked developing country, it attached to the tr ansit of goods.  Transit transport was a serious 
matter which Members were endeavouring to improve  in the Trade Facilitation negotiations, and it 
was something to which all Members should accord the importance it deserved.  Any confiscation of 
goods or any obstacle to transit always had to  be for strong and clearly justified reasons. 
93. The representative of Costa Rica  said his delegation was concerned about the situation 
described by Brazil and India.  Costa Rica w as concerned that goods which abided by WTO 
intellectual property rules could be subject to such  measures, and supported the call to the EC and the 
Netherlands to provide an explanation of this matter. 
94. The representative of the European Communities  said that while the EC recognized the right 
of Brazil and India to raise this issue in the present forum, it would have preferred that it had been 
raised bilaterally first, in order for the parties to  clarify the facts and figures before triggering a highly 
emotional debate.  It would also have preferre d that Members refrain from jumping to incorrect 
conclusions.  His delegation assumed that none of the countries which had spoken would wish the EC WT/GC/M/118 
Page 30  
 
  to allow the flow of counterfeit goods to their populat ions.  The issue at stake should not be blown out 
of proportion, but he had taken note of what had been said.  This was a case of a shipment of medicines from India to Brazil via the Netherla nds.  Dutch customs authorities had detained the 
shipment in conformity with EU and WTO law.  He also wished to clarify that the products had been 
neither seized nor destroyed.  From the EC's point of view, there was no indication of a systemic 
problem.  The value of the shipment was €50,000.  The shipment of the product which had been 
detained had been released to the owner, and the owner had not been ab le to decide what  he wanted to 
do with his property.  He could have sent it on to Br azil, but he had decided, for his own reasons, to 
send it back to India.  Article V of GATT 1994 a nd Article 51 of the TRIPS Agreement explicitly or 
implicitly allowed customs authorities to suspend the release of goods for control purposes.  He 
wished to repeat again that the EC understood the concerns of India and Brazil, but had to refute all 
the arguments that EU enforcement law would hamper  access to medicines.  He wished to make very 
clear that the EC had absolutely no intention to hamp er any legitimate trade in generic medicines or to 
create legal barriers to prevent movement of drugs to developing countries, nor had its measures had 
this effect.  It was absolutely committed to all th e efforts being made to facilitate access to medicines, 
including through the application of the Doha D eclaration on TRIPS and Public Health on access to 
medicines.  In the present case, it appeared that, following a request by a company which had patent 
rights on the medicine in question in the Netherlands , the Dutch authorities had temporarily detained a 
small shipment of drugs in a Dutch airport in trans it, in order to check it.  This action was based on 
provisions in EU customs law that allowed customs au thorities to temporarily detain – and this did not 
mean seize or confiscate – any goods if they su spected that these goods infringed an intellectual 
property right.  The goods had not been intended fo r the EC market, and the medicines had finally 
been released by the authorities, leaving their Indian owner the right to do with them as he pleased.  
There had been no legal obligation to send the goods b ack to their country of origin.  The EC was still 
not clear as to why the company had decided to pro ceed in this way, but this was beyond the EC's 
authority once the goods had been safely returned to th eir owner.  He wished to specify that the EU 
customs legislation foresaw that if a detention ha d been made on the basis of an unsubstantiated 
complaint, the owner of the products was entitled to compensation.  It went without saying that IP 
enforcement law should not create any undue barri ers to access to medicines, and the EC was 
confident that this had not been the case.  It was willing to look into the matter further and to clarify 
any questions not answered at the present meeting.   It would do so in a constructive manner, but 
wished to clarify the facts and legal provisions before Members hastily drew inappropriate 
conclusions. 
95. The representative of Brazil
 said his delegation wished to make two points.  One was that he 
hoped the EU in no way meant that in this particul ar case, counterfeit was an issue.  The customs 
authorities, as he understood it, had never doubted th at the shipment was generic drugs, and there was 
no documentation showing any indication of falsifica tion or counterfeit.  Second, the EC and Brazil 
clearly had a different understanding of the facts, a nd he fully agreed with the EC that the parties 
should explore this matter bilaterally  in order to understand what ha d happened.  Brazil was willing to 
do that in a non-emotional way.  His main hope was that the parties could bring this issue to full conformity with WTO law, and Brazil did not agr ee that Article 51 allowed customs to act in  a 
certain way.  It also hoped that the result of th ese efforts, together with India and perhaps other 
interested Members, would result in a situation where actions of this type would not recur. 
96. The representative of India
 said he wished to refer to a few points already made, and also to 
express his gratitude to all the delegations who had supported the issue it had raised.  First, he hoped 
that the EC's statement did not in any way imply that there was any link between this consignment 
and the issue of counterfeit.  These were two very sep arate issues, and this was at the heart of India's 
concerns. One could not equate generic medicines with counterfeit.  Second, the issue of losartan 
potassium had been raised in great detail, but India had also mentioned that this was not the only issue 
in question, as a number of consignments had been seized by the EU authorities, and there was a clear 
pattern to this which would need to be looked into  further.  Third, the word the EC had used was  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 31 
 
 
  "detention", but the notice in question was "confisca tion".  Clearly a more detailed examination was 
needed.  India wished to thank the EU for its re iteration of its support for the commitments made in 
the context of TRIPS and Public Health, and also  to welcome the opportunity to discuss these issues 
bilaterally or in any other format.  However, he re iterated that this matter involved systemic issues.  
India looked forward to a more detailed examination of these issues. 
97. The representative of th e European Communities  said that as Brazil and India had raised the 
question of whether this was a case of counterfeit, he could confirm that although he had used this 
word in his statement, this was not  a case of counterfeit.  His delegation also appreciated Brazil's offer 
to enter into non-emotional discussions.  The word  "confiscation" in the present discussion was not 
appropriate, as what had occu rred was merely "detention". 
98. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
10. Seventh Session of the Ministerial Conference – Statement by the Chairman 
99. The Chairman , speaking under "Other Business ", recalled that at the December meetings of 
the TNC and the General Council, the issue of the holding of the next regular mandated Ministerial 
Conference had been raised as warranting further reflection and discussion.  He had raised this issue 
informally in his recent consultations with delega tions, and believed there s hould be further and more 
substantive discussion before this issue was taken fo rward to a decision.  Members needed to develop 
greater clarity, for example, on all of the paramete rs surrounding the holding of such an event, and in 
particular on its scale, scope and purpose.  In the light  of this, he suggested that his successor take this 
issue up informally with delegations, and that th e General Council revert to it at a subsequent 
meeting. 
100. The General Council took note  of the statement. 
11. Administrative Measures for Members in arrears 
101. The Chairman , speaking under "Other Business ", recalled that at its meeting in May 2006, the 
General Council had approved a recommendati on from the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration regarding revised Administrative Measures for Members in arrears (WT/BFA/86).  
Among these Administrative Measures was a requirement that at each meeting of the General C ouncil, 
the Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Fina nce and Administration s hould provide information 
with regard to which Members were under Administ rative Measures in Ca tegories II through IV. 
102. Mr Stirø (Norway), Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration , said 
that in pursuance of the revised Administrative Measures approved by the General Council in May 2006, he wished to inform the Council that the Members under Categories II through IV of the Administrative Measures as at 31 January were as fo llows:  Grenada, Honduras, Lesotho and Peru in 
Category II;  Mali, Nicaragua, Paraguay and Zimbabwe  in Category III;  and the following Members 
in Category IV:  Burundi, Central African Re public, Chad, Commonwealth of Dominica, Côte 
d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti,  Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Malawi, 
Mauritania, Niger, Republic of Cong o, Senegal, Sierra Leone and To go.  He then recalled that the 
General Council had also authorized the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration to waive 
the application of the Measures for Members in Cate gory IV who agreed to, and abided by, a schedule 
of instalment payments aimed at liquidating all arre ars.  In this context, he invited Members which 
were concerned with this question to contact the Secretariat to discuss th e modalities for establishing 
such an instalment plan. 
103. The Chairman
 then recalled that under the revised Administrative Measures he was also 
required at each Council meeting to request t hose Members in Categories III and IV of the WT/GC/M/118 
Page 32  
 
  Administrative Measures to inform him, before the next meeting of the General Council, as to when 
their payment of arrears might be expected.  In keeping with the Administrative Measures, he would 
report on Members' replies to the next meeting of  the General Council.  Since the December Council 
meeting, he had not received any replies from the Members concerned. 
104. The General Council took note
 of the statements. 
12. Election of Chairperson 
105. The Chairman , as the outgoing presiding officer of the General Council, thanked all for their 
co-operation and goodwill during his te rm as General Council Chair.  The past year had not been an 
easy one and had been disappointing for all.  He partic ularly regretted not to have been able to assist 
delegations to reach the goal of the conclusion of modalities.  At the same time, one should not lose 
sight of what had been achieved in advancing wo rk in important areas.  Members had come a long 
way since the setback of earlier years.  He had r ecently come across a quote that had struck a chord 
with him:  "The current state of the negotiations c ould be summed up as so near and yet so far.  I think 
we now have the best window of opportunity to conclude.  We have a comprehensive and detailed 
sketch of the final package.  We have wide ag reement among world leaders that the long awaited 
conclusion is necessary.  Their advisors are work ing on a substantial market access package we all 
need.  What has now to happen is the final push, th e final burst of focussed political energy that it will 
take to complete the Round.  I know that to many people in the business community and to some 
participants, the Round seems to be going on forever.  It is certainly true that six and  half years is a 
very long time in politics or in busi ness, and that in an age of television sound bytes, it is not easy to 
maintain interest in something so complex for so long .  I urge you to resist the cynical voices that we 
hear time and time again.  I am convinced the r esult will be worth the wait."  That quote was from 
Arthur Dunkel in 1993 in the context of the then -ongoing Uruguay Round nego tiations.  Mr. Dunkel's 
point had been simply to urge Members to persevere and intensify their efforts to conclude the Round.  
Mr. Dunkel had been sure then, as was the case at pr esent, that it would be worth the effort.  Aside 
from the Doha Round, the WTO had taken forward some important work over the past year, and much more lay ahead.  It was appropriate at the pr esent time that one reflected on the importance of 
this institution and of the system of rules that unde rpinned it.  Amidst all the current turmoil in the 
international economy, one could perhaps see more cl early now the enduring value of what one had, 
and of the need to protect and advance it.  He thanked the Director-Gener al for his cooperation and 
tireless efforts to advance the work of the or ganization and the DDA over the past year, and 
welcomed the signals of support he had seen amo ng the membership for the Director-General's 
reappointment.  He had benefited greatly from the he lp of former Council Chairs.  He had especially 
appreciated Mr Noor's wise counsel and friendship ove r the past year.  He had also appreciated the 
help and support of Mr Matus, the outgoing Dispute Settlement Body Chair.  Finally, he wished to 
thank the Director and staff of the CTNC Division for their committed support and assistance.  For his 
own part, he hoped to remain part of Member s' collective endeavour working from capital. 
106. The General Council then unanimously elected
 Mr Mario Matus (Chile) to the Chair. 
107. The Director-General  thanked the outgoing Chair of the General Council for his hard work, 
his reliability and his great qualities of wisdom, co mmon sense, and diplomatic and negotiating skills.  
He had met the Chairman weekly, at times daily, a nd had always appreciated his clear and balanced 
views which he had expressed in hi s invariably courteous manner. 
108. The newly-elected Chairman  said that first, on behalf of the membership, he wished to thank 
the outgoing Chair.  There was no doubt that the latter had set the mark very high.  He had earned the 
admiration, respect and gratitude of all.  With his calm and quiet tone of voice, a signal of his discretion, he had skilfully chaired the Genera l Council during the complicated moments of 2008, 
particularly in the months of July and December.  One never saw him upset – on the contrary, he was  WT/GC/M/118 
 Page 33 
 
 
  able to transmit calmness and serenity when it was most needed.  Throughout the year, he not only 
listened carefully but had shown great patience.  He always knew how to react correctly to new issues 
or situations, and to even the most eccentric id eas he would respond with a soft smile, noting a signal 
of approval or disdain that was always based on goo d judgement and prudence.  Unfortunately he was 
leaving Geneva in the next days and therefore de legates, especially himself, would be unable to 
continue to profit from his experience and good judgment.  His own election as Chair by the 
membership reminded him of the story of a Chil ean President, whose mother, while watching him 
being sworn in, and unaware that anyone was liste ning, was overheard on live television saying "Son, 
what have you got yourself into?".  This was a fee ling he shared now.  It was a great honour for him, 
for Chile, and for Latin America and for the Caribbean to have been entrusted with such an important 
responsibility – one he would do his utmost to fulfil  in a transparent manner and with humility.  The 
Chairman of the General Council was nothing more than a primus inter pares – first among equals – 
whose duty was to the Members.  A few days earlier, a former Ambassador and friend of the organization, who was now a strategic business adviser , had told him that the previous year he had 
informed his clients that 2009 would be a critical  period in the history of the multilateral trading 
system.  He had not been wrong.  Members were curre ntly dealing with a financial crisis, a recession 
in large parts of the world, growing protectioni sm and their failure to agree on modalities in the 
context of the Doha negotiations.  It reminded him of  what Charles Dickens had written in "A Tale of 
Two Cities":  "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness […], it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of 
hope, it was the winter of despair".  This seemed a good description of the current climate.  These 
were seemingly complicated and troubled times, a nd yet it was precisely during such periods that 
opportunities arose.  Indeed, in moments of uncerta inty and doubt, the need for strong and credible 
institutions became clear.  This was Members' shar ed task.  There was much that Members could and 
had to do in this area.  Their first task was to try to conclude the Doha Round modalities, but in a 
pragmatic and ambitious manner. 
109. In 2009 Members had also to appoint new Appellate Body members.  They had to continue 
the process of following up the trade measures a dopted in response to the economic crisis.  
Consultations had to be initiated in respect of th e holding of the next Ministerial Conference that 
formed part of Members' mandate, and for whic h there had been recent fervent calls.  Without 
reducing the intensity of the Doha  Round negotiating groups, Members also had to work in the regular 
committees.  This was where idea s for the future should begin to take shape and where new 
developments taking place outside the organization c ould be discussed.  Only if Members faced up to 
the current concerns of society would the WTO avoid the risk of becoming irrelevant.  In the outside world there was talk of so-called "new" issues – even though they were, in fact, old – such as 
competition, investment and government procuremen t.  Energy, water and labour standards had also 
been mentioned.  Businesses and governments referred to the issue of restrictive trade practices, as 
well as to climate change and financial services.  Key elements of the WTO structure were being 
examined, such as the dispute settle ment system.  The implications of free-trade agreements for the 
multilateral system were being analysed.  Outsid e the organization, even the legitimacy and 
respresentativeness of the WTO were being discussed.  This was not simply his own impression.  Talk to this effect could be overheard in the corridors a nd at informal gatherings.  In conclusion, Members 
had to respect and strengthen the mandates and the re gular institutional framework of the WTO.  They 
had to continue working.  Waiting or not doing anything was not an option. 
110. The representative of the United States
 said that Members had been fortunate to have selected 
the outgoing Council Chair.  Looking backwards at th e progress made over the past year, he attributed 
much of that progress to the outgoing Chair's steady ha nd on the tiller of the organization.  His ability 
to keep his eye, and Members' eyes, on the big pi cture, as well as his ability to  forge consensus in the 
midst of all manner of confusi on and cacophony had been a critical element in the advances made 
during the past year.  He was a truly outsta nding example of someone who had applied his 
extraordinary talents for the benefit of the membersh ip as a whole.  One often heard that the job of WT/GC/M/118 
Page 34  
 
  General Council Chair was a thankless one, and he wa s convinced that many times during this past 
year the outgoing Chair had felt that way.  The remarks made at the present meeting demonstrated 
unequivocally that all were extremely thankful fo r the job he had done.  The outgoing Chair was a 
very modest and self-effacing person, but he could ta ke enormous pride in what he had done in the 
past year as General Council Chair and in the year be fore as DSB Chair.   He also wished to welcome 
the incoming Council Chair.  As someone who had k nown the latter for more than a decade, he was 
absolutely confident that he would continue the record of superlative General Council Chairpersons 
that the membership had had in recent years.  He  congratulated him on his election, and thanked him 
for his willingness to serve.  His dele gation pledged full support to him. 
111. The representative of Cuba
, on behalf of GRULAC , said these countries first wished to 
express their appreciation for the work of the outgoing Chair, who ha d succeeded in guiding 
Members' work with skill and by consensus in co mplicated matters, and under circumstances in which 
consensus appeared problematic.  Th ey also wished to welcome and co ngratulate the incoming Chair.  
GRULAC was especially honoured that such a high  position in the organization would be held in 
2009 by a representative of its regional group.  The Group was certain that he would lead the Council 
just as he had the Dispute Settlement Body – with  wisdom, patience, transparency, intelligence and 
consensus.  It wished him ev ery success in his new position, and reiterated its support for his 
chairmanship. 
112. The representative of Mauritius,  on behalf of the ACP Group , expressed the Group's sincere 
gratitude to the outgoing Chair for the excellent leadership qualities, sense of fairness and quiet 
diplomacy displayed during his tenure.  The past year  had not been easy.  It had been very hectic and 
stressful for the Chair.  The Group had always been  convinced of his commitment to the WTO and to 
facilitate business at all times.  It also wished  to congratulate the incoming Chair and was fully 
confident that, owing to his experience, Members were  in good hands.  He wished to assure him of the 
unfailing support of the ACP Group in his new responsibilities. 
113. The representative of Brazil , on behalf on the G-20 , expressed appreciation to the outgoing 
Chair for his valuable contribution as Council Chairman during the past year.  He had made an 
important contribution to the WTO by the way in which he had conducted th e consultative process in 
the General Council during a critical moment of th e Doha Round negotiations.  His chairmanship and 
personality reflected the very spirit of the WTO,  approaching issues and processes in an open, 
inclusive and transparent manner.  His skill, discip line and determination had always been employed 
with a view to strengthening the multilateral tradi ng system and to building consensus.  All had 
benefited from his suggestions, experience and pers onal engagement.  He wished him good luck and 
success in his new post and hoped that Members' path would keep crossing his for a long time to 
come.  He also wished to welcome the newly-el ected Chair.  The G-20 Members knew him well and 
were well aware of how his important work had help ed in the Dispute Settlement Body.  He was sure 
that that work would continue in the General Council and that the G-20 would equally benefit from 
his support, experience and  leadership.  In every area in which the G-20 Members had dealt with the 
newly-elected Chair, he had shown dedication and professionalism, and his contributions had always 
been creative and constructive.  That was not a little to say.  He wished him good luck and was 
confident that he would fulfil all his tasks with great competence.  The G-20 Members would help 
him in any way they could. 
114. The representative of Egypt , on behalf of the African Group , said the Group was grateful to 
the outgoing Chair for the very able  leadership and excellent spirit of cooperation in which he had 
conducted the work of the General Council.  The Group was thankful for th e close communication he 
had kept with all Members, and in particular with the African Group.  The Group welcomed the 
incoming Chair and wished him a very fruitful and successful term.  It assured him of the full support 
and cooperation of all Members of the Group.  The Group also welcomed and congratulated the other 
incoming Chairs.  WT/GC/M/118 
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  115. The representative of New Zealand  congratulated the newly-elected Chair on his 
appointment, and thanked the outgoing Chair for hi s words of welcome.  He looked forward to 
working with all on the regular business of the orga nization and helping facilitate the earliest possible 
conclusion to the Round.  To the outgoing Chair, he wished to say that he would be missed and to 
wish him every success in whatev er challenges awaited him. 
116. The representative of Thailand , on behalf of ASEAN Members , expressed their deepest 
appreciation for the tremendous work carried out by the outgoing Chair over the past year.  During this period, and in spite of the various politi cal and technical obstacles encountered in the 
negotiations, delegations had witnessed his invaluab le contribution in facilitating progress in the DDA 
negotiations.  He thanked him for his hard work steering Members through some difficult periods in 
the past year, and for his efforts in ensuring balan ce and continuity of various negotiating issues in his 
own uniquely economic and efficient style.  The ASEAN wished him every success in his next challenge and hoped that in some  capacity he would be part of the future success Members might 
achieve in their ongoing negotiations.  It also wish ed to welcome the incoming Chair.  The ASEAN 
stood ready to work closely with him in pursu it of Members' collective goals throughout his 
chairmanship in the year ahead. 
117. The representative of Tanzania
, on behalf of the LDCs , expressed appreciation for the work 
done by the outgoing Chair and wished him the best.  As to the incoming Chair, the current year would be difficult, and he would have to face pressure  and deal with difficult duties.  He wished to 
assure the incoming Council Chair and all incoming Ch airs of the LDCs' cooperation and support for 
the purpose of furthering the objectives of the WTO. 
118. The representative of Hong Kong, China
 joined previous speakers in expressing gratitude to 
the outgoing Chair for his excellence work and di stinguished leadership.  He had guided Members 
through difficult times in taking forward and stre ngthening the multilateral trading system.  His 
relentless efforts, diplomatic skills and valuable  contributions were deeply appreciated, and his 
delegation wished him every success in his new e ndeavours.  Hong Kong, China also wished to 
welcome the incoming Chair.  His delegation looked forward to working with him and assured him of 
its support for his work in the coming year, which would no doubt be full of challenges as Members 
worked towards an ambitious and balanced  outcome for the Round during his tenure. 
119. The representative of Peru  expressed his delegation's gratitude  to the outgoing Chair for the 
work he had completed so successfully.  He wished  him all the best with his new responsibilities and 
reiterated that his delegation would always be at his disposal.  As to the incoming Chair, Peru was 
honoured to see a very distinguished Ambassador of a sister nation chair the General Council at a time 
that, according to the Director-General, could be the final leg of a long round of trade negotiations.  
Peru was aware that the incoming Chair was an endurance athlete and was therefore certain that, 
accompanied by the Director-General, another tirel ess marathon runner, they would lead Members in 
the final sprint required to cover that 20 per cent of  the distance said to remain in order to ensure a 
successful conclusion to the Doha Round.  He wi shed him well in his new position, and assured him 
that his delegation would play an active role and cooperate closely with him to ensure a successful 
outcome to his work. 
120. The representative of India  said he had developed great respect and admiration for the 
outgoing Chair's sense of balance and equality and hi s fair play.  He had performed his duties with 
great distinction, and the WTO was the richer for it.  On a personal note, he would miss his calm 
presence and friendship.  As to the incoming Chair, he knew that Members were in safe hands that 
would guide their ship through very troubled waters.  He wished him the very best and assured him of 
his delegation's consistent support in the months to come. WT/GC/M/118 
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  121. The representative of Norway
 shared the views expressed by previous speakers in thanking 
the outgoing Chair for his leadership  and welcoming the incoming Chair. 
122. The representative of Mexico  thanked the outgoing Chair for his excellent work during the 
past year, and welcomed the incoming Chair – an excellent ambassador and a great friend. 
123. The representative of Turkey  thanked the outgoing Chair for the great job he had done as 
Chair of the General Council, with his wisdom, modesty and discipline.  His silent power in the 
Council room had been remarkable.  Turkey had full support and confidence in the incoming Chair 
and wished him the best. 
124. The representative of Nigeria  said his delegation wished to acknowledge the efficient and 
effective manner in which the outgoing Chair had ha ndled Members' affairs over the past year, and 
also looked forward to working closely with the incoming Chair. 
125. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
 
__________