WORLD TRADE WT/MIN(96)/ST/20
9December 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-5188)
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE Original: English
Singapore, 9-13December 1996
FINLAND
Statement byMr.OleNorrback
Minister forEuropean Affairs andForeign Trade
Mydelegation hascome fromthecoldanddarkautumn ofFinland toyourwonderful tropical
cityofexcellence. Theprofessional waythatyouhaveorganized thisConference hasgained admiration
ofall.
Thetradeagenda isexpanding together withthechanging world. Atthesame timethelinkage
between political, social, ecological andeconomic issues isbecoming closer. Allthishasimplications
forthemultilateral trading system which isguarded bytheWTO.
TheprimaryobjectivesfortheConferenceshouldbetoassuretheimplementationoftheUruguay
Round Agreements andthusstrengthen thefunctioning ofthemultilateral trading system. Weneed
toensure thatallMembers arefulfilling thecommitments undertaken.
Finland hasexperienced thebenefits ofrapid development oftheinformation society. The
information technology isoneofthemain factors thatpromote allkinds ofinternational cooperation
andwell-being. Thissector mustbeahighpriority since itiscrucial forallofus.Therefore westress
theimportance ofreaching anagreement oninformation technology inthisConference andwestrongly
urgeMembers tojoininit.Thiswould pavethewayforfurther concrete liberalization ofworld trade.
Anotherdimensionoftheinformationsocietyisbasictelecommunications.Theabilitytocompete
isnowadays more andmore influenced bytheability ofcompanies tocommunicate. Wehaveseen
thisinmyowncountry where telecommunications markets arefree. Competition means lower prices
andbetter services andisthusintheinterest ofconsumers andbusinesses. Therefore, IurgeMember
Governments tomake aclearcommitment toconclude thenegotiations onbasic telecommunications
within thesettime-frame.
Globalization oftheworld economy isproceeding rapidly. Inorder tomaintain itscredibility
anddynamism theWTO should prove capable ofaddressing questions thatarerelevant toconsumers,
business andgovernments. Thismeans thatitmustconsider arange ofnewissues which areemerging.
Multilateral trade callsforustotakeuptheissue ofinvestments. Webelieve thataglobal
regime forinvestment isintheinterest ofallWTO Members andtherefore theWTO must startto
work onsuchamultilateral arrangement.
Another newissue islabour standards, which isaverycomplex andcontroversial one. We
areallcommitted toenhancing corelabour standards. Recognizing theprimary roleoftheILO,Finland
./.WT/MIN(96)/ST/20
Page2
strongly supports adialogue ontheissue. WTO could examine incooperation withtheILOareas
where tocontribute tothepromotion oflabour standards. Thestarting pointshould betheunderstanding
thattrade liberalization cancontribute totheimprovement oflabour conditions.
Itisimportant tofindproper solutions tothequestions oftradeandenvironment. Wearevery
disappointed thattheWTO Committee didnotproduce asubstantive conclusion fortheadoption at
thisConference. Nevertheless, wewelcome thefactthatthework willcontinue. Wemustnotleave
destroyed nature tofollowing generations. Allofusmustdoourutmost inorder toarrive atmeaningful
results without delay. TheFinnish priority intheWTO work istoimprove thecompatibility between
WTO rules andtrade measures contained intheMultilateral Environmental Agreements.
TheWTO needs toproduce apolitical vision forthefuture. Ourgoalshould beauniversal
trading system. Inthisprocess theWTO should havealeading role. ThatiswhytheMembership
ofcountries likeRussia, theBaltic States andChina isessential fortheOrganization. Wealsohave
todoourutmost tointegrate alldeveloping countries intothemultilateral trading system. Thisrequires
concrete, positive measures especially infavour oftheleastdeveloped countries. Developing countries
cannot beleftoutside.
Finally, letmeemphasize thenecessity todraw upaforward-looking work programme for
theOrganization. Wecould reapenormous benefits from suchaneffort andthisConference offers
usanopportunity todoit.