WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/RL/22 
17 July 2008 
 (08-3460) 
Negotiating Group on Rules  
  
 
 
NEGOTIATING GROUP ON RULES 
 
Report by the Chairman to the 
 
Trade Negotiations Committee  
 
 
1. As I prepare this Report to the Trade Negotia tions Committee, negotiators are getting ready 
for critical meetings that we all hope will result in  the establishment of modalities in Agriculture and 
Non-Agricultural Market Access.  Since Rules nego tiations are part of the single undertaking under 
paragraph 47 of the Doha Declaration, we must be in a position to move quickly to insure that our 
work is effectively synchronized with that of othe r Groups so that Rules can make its contribution to 
the overall package of results of the Round.  This  task requires guidance from the Chair and I have 
already conveyed to you, informally, my ideas about  how the Rules negotiations should proceed in the 
period after modalities have been achieved.  I w ould now like to report to the Trade Negotiations 
Committee, formally and with more precision,  my intentions in this regard.    
Anti-Dumping and Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, including Fisheries Subsidies  
2. Anti-Dumping and Horizontal Subsidies .  Let me first speak to the need and timing for new 
texts on anti-dumping and horizontal subsidies.  When I issued my texts in November last year, I emphasized that those texts were Chair's drafts intended to provoke discussion on the broad parameters of possible outcomes to the negotiations;  that they were technical papers not submitted for 
approval in whole or in part;  and lastly that I w ould circulate revised draft texts as soon as I had a 
sufficient basis to do so.  Although I do not actually  have the basis I had hoped for to prepare these 
revised drafts, I believe that we cannot afford to  wait any longer (for the reasons mentioned in the 
paragraph above) before I circulate new texts in these areas.  Accordingly, I intend to circulate revised 
draft texts on anti-dumping and horizontal subsidies as soon as possible after modalities are achieved, 
and in any event well in advance of our meetings in  September, as discussed below.  This will allow 
delegations to be fully prepared when we resume in the fall. 
3. With respect to the nature of these coming texts, it is clear to me that we need to move from 
the Chair's texts to Draft texts which will have to describe a gradually emerging consensus.  This is 
for the following reasons.  First, few if any delega tions believe that my first Chair's texts struck a 
proper balance.  Second, little if any progress has b een made since I tabled those texts to find an 
alternative balance around which Members could converg e.  Third, it seems to me that Members at 
this stage would prefer that I pursue a bottom-up a pproach and that I adequately reflect the actual 
negotiations among Members.  I should therefore star t providing draft legal language in those areas 
where we could find consensus and in areas where c onvergence could be potentially achieved.  This is 
the only way to provide all delega tions with the assurances they n eed that their positions are not 
prejudiced by revised texts.  Thus, it should not be  expected that my new texts will offer any magic 
solutions in the many areas where Members' positi ons differ dramatically and where the alternatives 
remain as delegations originally tabl ed them, i.e., very far apart.   TN/RL/22 
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  4. Fisheries Subsidies .  With respect to fisheries subsidies, the situation is more complex and the 
problem is of a different nature.  While progress on fisheries subsidies is of course no less urgent or 
important than that on anti-dumping and horizontal subsidies, in this area we have no pre-existing 
GATT/WTO agreements to which we can revert and the differences among delega tions go to the very 
concepts and structure of the rules.  Here, we ar e faced with fundamental challenges.  The Group, as 
mandated, should strengthen disciplines on subsidies in the fisheries sector, including through the 
prohibition of certain forms of fisheries subsidies th at contribute to overcapac ity and over-fishing.  At 
the same time we should effectively and appropriate ly formulate a special and differential treatment 
that addresses the very real concerns of developing  Members with respect to development priorities, 
poverty reduction, and live lihood and food security concerns, including for millions of small fishers.  
These legitimate concerns can only be heightened by the current crisis of surging food prices.  I 
believe that further discussion is necessary to prov ide the essential input I require for a forthcoming 
revision of my text on fisheries subsidies that could meet these two important objectives.  As a tool to facilitate those discussions, I expect to table a specific "road map" (i.e. a paper identifying the key questions we need to address in order to reconcile th e approaches).  I will do this at the same time as I 
circulate revised texts on anti-dumping and horizontal s ubsidies, as it is important that all areas of our 
mandate continue to move forward together. 
5. Work programme .  If we hope to move to final agreem ent in this Round by the end of the 
year, it is clear that, in Rules, we will have to  start early and work very hard to get there.  
Accordingly, I intend to convoke a series of intensiv e meetings right after summer break.  I expect to 
start with an extended session on fisheries subs idies, from Monday 1 September through Wednesday 
10 September, in order to gain the input mentione d above.  We will then turn immediately to anti-
dumping and horizontal subsidies, with a two-we ek session running from 15 to 26 September.  
Thereafter we will need to meet on a regular and in  fact nearly continuous basis throughout the fall 
and to that end I have already reserved rooms for further clusters from 13 to 24 October and 10 to 
21 November.  I seek to develop further revised texts, aiming at circulation towards the end of 
October and again in early December.  This is in my  view the best way to ensure that we will have 
Rules texts reflecting the greatest convergence possi ble for inclusion in the final comprehensive 
package of results for the Round.   
Regional Trade Agreements
 
6. The Transparency Mechanism .  Members will recall that at the time of the last General 
Council meeting in December 2007, I had indicated th at the initial review of the provisionally adopted 
Transparency Mechanism on Regional Trade Agreem ents could not be completed because Members 
felt that the necessary experience w ith the Mechanism had not yet b een built up.  The Transparency 
Mechanism, which was negotiated in the Negotiati ng Group on Rules, is being implemented by the 
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA)  and the Committee on Trade and Development 
(CTD).  While the CRTA has until now considered  17 RTAs, the CTD has not yet had a chance to 
consider any RTAs under the Transparen cy Mechanism mainly because few new  RTAs have been 
notified under the Enabling Clause;  the first such consideration by the CTD is expected in October 
this year.   
7. It is my sense that Members continue to be lieve that while experience is being built up 
gradually, especially in the CRTA and perhaps shortly  in the CTD, it remains insufficient at this time 
to allow a review of the functioning of the Mechanis m to be completed.  Nevertheless, I do think that 
discussions on the functioning of the Transparency Mechanism should take place.  I propose therefore 
to schedule an informal meeting of the Group in early  October to begin such consultations.  Inputs for 
this meeting would be greatly assisted by Members' views on the functioning of the Mechanism.  I also think that it would be appropriate to ask the Chair of the implementing bodies, the CRTA (and the Chair of the CTD once an agreement has been c onsidered in the CTD) for their views, on their 
own responsibility, on the functioning of the Mechan ism in the CRTA (and the CTD);  in addition, I  TN/RL/22 
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  will also ask the Secretariat to outline its experien ce in implementing the Mechanism.  These three 
elements will help the Negotiating Group to be gin its discussions on the functioning of the 
Transparency Mechanism on RTAs. 
8. The systemic issues relating to RTAs.   In this area I will continue to consult Members.  My 
impression is that no one is disputing the fundament al importance of the issues and to continuing 
discussions on systemic issues.  Nevertheless, as I have argued before, the Group cannot advance and 
conclude its work in this area without text-based pr oposals by Members.  As time is short - we have 
only 16 weeks left - I hope we will see text-based pr oposals from Members, as instructed by Ministers 
in December 2005, in time for the next meeti ng of the Group in October and to bring these 
negotiations to a successful conclusion.    
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