RESTRICTED  
 WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  S/C/M/69 
15 December 2003 
 ( 03-6601 ) 
  
Council for Trade in Services  
 
 
 
REPORT OF THE MEETING HELD ON 5 DECEMBER 2003 
 
Note by the Secretariat1 
 
 
1. The Council for Trade in Services held a meeting on 5 December 2003 chaired by 
Ambassador Ousmane Camara (Senegal).  The age nda for this meeting is  contained in document 
WTO/AIR/2223. 
2. The Chairman  informed the Council that he intende d to make a statement regarding the 
designation of chairpersons of the subsidiary bodi es to the Council for Trade in Services for 2004 
under Other Business.  He suggested that the agenda  be adopted as circulated with the addition to 
Other Business to which he had just referred. 
3. It was so agreed . 
A. ANNUAL  REPORTS  OF THE  SUBSIDIARY  BODIES  TO THE  COUNCIL  FOR  TRADE  IN 
SERVICES 
4. The Chairman  stated that in accordance with the Decision on Institutional Arrangements for 
the GATS, the Council's subsidiary bodies were to repor t to it annually or more often as necessary.  In 
this regard, he drew the Council's attention to these annual reports which had been recently adopted 
by the Committee on Specific Commitments (S/CSC /9), the Committee on Trade in Financial 
Services (S/FIN/10), the Working Party on Domestic  Regulation (S/WPDR/6), and the Working Party 
on GATS Rules (S/WPGR/13).  He proposed that the Council take note of these reports on the 
understanding that they would be annexed to the Co uncil's report and would form an integral part of 
it.   
5. It was so decided . 
B. ADOPTION OF THE ANNUAL REPORT TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL 
6. The Chairman  drew the Council's attention to the draft of the Council's annual report 
contained in document S/C/W/230.  He pointed out that there was a typographical error in the last line 
of paragraph 2 of the draft where "informal" should be "formal".  He recalled that the reports of the 
subsidiary bodies of which the Council had just ta ken note would be annexed to the report of the 
Council.   
7. As no Members sought any changes to the draf t, the Chairman proposed that the Annual  
Report be adopted. 
                                                      
1 This document has been prepared under the Secret ariat's own responsibility and without prejudice to 
the positions of Members and to their rights and obligations under the WTO. S/C/M/69 
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 8. It was so decided . 
C. NOTIFICATIONS TO THE COUNCIL PURSUANT TO ARTICLES III:3 AND V:7 OF 
THE GATS 
9. The Chairman  drew the Council's attention to recent notifications made pursuant to 
Article III:3 (Transparency) of the GATS.  He stat ed that one notification had been made by Japan, 
contained in document S/C/N/234, two notifica tions from Bolivia, contained in documents 
S/C/N/235-236, one notification from Armenia, contained in document S/C/N/237, as well as twenty-
three notifications from the People's Republic of  China, contained in documents S/C/N/238 to 
S/C/N/260.  He pointed out that the notifications contained in documents S/C/N/255-260 were not 
indicated on the agenda because they were ma de after the agenda had been issued.   
10. The representative of th e European Communities  suggested that their notification contained in 
document S/C/N/261 be included on the agenda. 
11. The Chairman  proposed that the Council take note of these notifications. 
12. It was so agreed . 
13. The Chairman  further drew the Council's attention to  one notification (S/C/N/233) made by 
Australia and Singapore pursuant to Article V: 7 (Economic Integration) of the GATS.   
14. The representative of Australia  informed the Council that the Australian Minister of Trade 
and the Singapore Minister of Trade and Indus try had signed the Singapore-Australia Free Trade 
Agreement (SAFTA) on 17 February 2003, which had entered into force on 28 July 2003.  He stated 
that the agreement further strengthened trade and in vestment links between Australia and Singapore.  
He further stated that, in addition to tariff elimin ation, this agreement guaranteed increased market 
access for Australian exporters of services, particularly  education, environmental, telecommunications 
and professional services.  He  indicated that this  agreement provided a more open and predictable 
business environment across a range of areas including competition policy, governmental 
procurement, intellectual property, e-commerce,  customs procedures, and business travel.   
15. The Chairman  proposed that the Council take note of the notification and the statement made 
and that this agreement be referred to the Comm ittee on Regional Trade Agreements for examination 
of its consistency with the provi sions of Article V of the GATS. 
16. It was so decided . 
D. REQUEST  FOR  A WAIVER  FROM  SPECIFIC  COMMITMENTS  UNDER  THE  GATS  
PURSUANT  TO ARTICLES  IX:3  AND  4 OF THE  MARRAKESH  AGREEMENT  
ESTABLISHING  THE  WORLD  TRADE  ORGANIZATION 
17. The Chairman  drew the Council's attention to a request for waiver made by the Government 
of Albania to allow Albania to postpone until 31 December 2004 the implementation of commitments 
undertaken in its GATS Schedule with respect to the exclusivity granted to Albtelecom SH.A 
("Albtelecom").  He noted that this request was presented in accordance with paragraphs 3 and 4 of 
Article IX of the Marrakesh Agre ement Establishing the World Trade Organization.  This article 
stipulated that in exceptional circumstances, a Me mber might request a waiver from an obligation 
imposed on it by any of the Multilateral Trade Agreements, including the GATS.  The Chairman 
further noted that the communication from Albania,  contained in document S/L/148, had described 
the exceptional circumstances justifying the grant of the waiver.  He indicated that a request for a 
waiver concerning the GATS were to be submitted initially to the Council for Trade in Services for  S/C/M/69 
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 examination within a period of 90 days, and that at the end of this period, the Council were to submit 
a report to the General Council.   
18. The representative of  Albania  thanked the Council for giving his Government the opportunity 
to explain its waiver request.  He pointed out that  the commitments referred to in the request, which 
had been made during the accession negotiations, was re lated specifically to the liberalization of the 
international public voice services. 
19. He stated that the Government of Albania w as fully committed to its reform program which 
included as key elements the liberalization of the strategic sectors of the economy and their privatization.  A strong legal framework had been  developed for this purpose and the government was 
successfully pursuing its early reform stra tegy.  Given its economic importance, the 
telecommunications sector had been a focus of the re form.  He noted that, by recognizing the special 
role of telecommunications services in sustainabl e development, the Government of Albania had 
taken concrete and specific steps aiming at the en hancement of the performance of this sector and its 
development in accordance with international standards. 
20. He indicated that in order to achieve these goa ls, the Government of Albania had adopted a 
Policy Paper for the Development of the Telecomm unications Sector which envisaged a mid-term 
development.  Following the successful privatiza tion of the first mobile operator in 2000 in 
accordance with the policy paper, the Government of Albania had issued the second GSM license in 
2001 through an open international tende r.  He drew the Council's attention to the dramatic effect of 
liberalization and privatization of the telecommunica tions sector in Albania where mobile subscribers 
had increased about 50 times during four years from 20 000 in 1999 to more than 1 000 000 to date. 
21. He stated that the same trend had been achie ved in other subsectors in accordance with the 
strategy and commitments of Albania during its  accession negotiations.  He enumerated subsectors 
such as internet services, value-added services, da ta processing and transmission services, which were 
liberalized and fully opened to competition with many private operators well established across the 
country. 
22. Regarding the fixed telephony services, the represen tative of Albania noted that this subsector 
had been further liberalized in his country during 2003, which was now fully opened to competition in 
urban areas subsequent to liberalization in rural areas in 1999.  He pointed out that this step marked 
the largest liberalization of Albania's telecomm unications sector where various private telephone 
operators had become partners of Albteleco m – the national public telephone company. 
23. The representative of Albania noted that, desp ite these achievements, there were issues not 
within the full control of his Government.  He believed that a substantial transformation of the 
telecommunications sector could only be achieved by a successful privatization of Albtelecom.  While 
noting that the national telephone company had been restructured and was operating in a liberalized 
market, he pointed out that his Government could on ly reach the strategic targets defined in the policy 
paper through major investments and appropriate  management ensured by a competitive and 
transparent privatization.  He stated that this was the reason why the privatization of Albtelecom had 
been a priority on Albania's privatization agenda.  He indicated that such process had been closely 
assisted by international advisers selected through a World Bank program. 
24. The representative of Albania admitted that, notwithstanding the major efforts made by his 
Government and advisers towards this objective, th e privatization of Albtelecom had been postponed 
several times.  He pointed out that the postponement  was mainly due to external factors including the 
war in Kosovo during 1999, the terrorist acts of 2001, the recent global recession and the shift of 
interest of major global operators toward capital investments in third generation services, which had 
led to the lack of interest in the privatization of Albtelecom in several failed attempts over the S/C/M/69 
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 preceding three years.  He drew the attention of the Council to the same situation in other emerging 
markets and specifically in Eastern Europe. 
25. He reiterated that his Government was fully comm itted to proceeding with the privatization.  
He stated that the appropriate time for relaunc hing the process would be the beginning of the second 
quarter of 2004 according to the indicat ions of the international adviser. 
26. He noted that the policy paper for the telecomm unications sector had set specific targets for 
Albtelecom to achieve by 2005 and that the company should make major investments especially in 
rural and remote areas of the country.  He further noted that, in view of considerable investments 
needed for the achievement of su ch targets and the privatization of the company to be completed 
during 2004, the Government of Albania had extende d the exclusivity of Albtelecom for the supply of 
international telephone services until 31 Decemb er 2004 as a compensation for investment 
commitments. 
27. He emphasized that this was the last and the only exclusive right Albtelecom enjoyed in the 
Albanian market, as all the other services had been liberalized in accordance with the commitments of 
Albania and international standards.   He believed that all the arguments discussed and the specifics of 
the transition in Albania, on which the postponement  of the exclusivity from 1 January 2003 to 31 
December 2004 was based, justified the waiver requ est.  Pointing out that such request was not a 
withdrawal of commitments but a temporary freeze of implementation, he reiterated that Albania was 
deeply dedicated to fulfilling its commitments.   He hoped Members could express their understanding 
on this issue and could accept his delegation's request. 
28. The representative of th e European Communities  thanked the representative of Albania for 
providing information about the context of the requ est.  She commended Albania for the transparency 
it had shown.  She noted that based on the app lication and the presentation made by Albania, the 
waiver decision would only relate to international telephone services.  She also noted that there was a 
wide-ranging liberalization in the other subsectors of telecommunicati ons in Albania.  She said that 
the European Communities was in the process of studying Albania's application and had questions 
about some of the elements of the motives which were set out in the Albania's proposal.  She 
indicated that the clarification made by Albania sugg ested that the issue was not so much related to 
the question of privatization per se,  but rather to the conflict situation in the region.  She said that the 
European Communities would seek consultations w ith the delegation of Albania, and hoped to 
provide an answer at the next meeting. 
29. The representative of the United States  also thanked the representative of Albania for his 
presentation.  She said that, like th e European Communities, the Unite d States was not in a position to 
be able to react to the request at this meeting but looked forward to having further clarifications on 
some points her delegation was studying.  She expre ssed appreciation for the information provided by 
Albania, which would facilitate the task ahead.  She indicated that her delegation would undertake 
further consultations with Albania and would revert to this item at the next meeting. 
30. The representative of Japan  thanked Albania for its presen tation and commended it for having 
initiated a procedure in a transparent manne r given the actual situation in Albania's 
telecommunications sector.  Although he coul d not commend the delay in implementing 
commitments, he stated that from a procedural or legal correctness and transparency point of view, the 
initiative taken by Albania was an example to be follo wed in similar situations.  With respect to the 
waiver procedure, he posed several technical questi ons to the Secretariat. He asked how the request 
should be evaluated in the period leading to the decision by the General Council or report by the 
Services Council to the General Council.  He inquire d as to the kind of decision or report the Council 
for Trade in Services was expected  to make and whether a recommendation should be included in the 
report.  He further inquired as to how the General Council would make a waiver decision, namely by  S/C/M/69 
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 three-fourth majority according to Article IX:3 (a ) of the WTO Agreement or  by consensus according 
to footnote 4 under the same provision.  With respect  to the substance of the Albanian request, he 
questioned its ties to the conflict in Kosovo or th e terrorist activities of 11 September 2001.  He 
indicated that his delegation disagreed on some poi nts contained in the explanations presented by 
Albania, particularly on the general statement ma de at the end of paragraph 5 of the Albanian 
communication, which stated that the experience of other countries demonstrated that strategic 
investors had been granted a minimum period of two years between privatization and liberalization.  
He thought that political elements should be distingui shed from other economic situations.  Finally, he 
said that Japan needed to further examine the Albania's request.   
31. The representative of Canada  also thanked Albania for its intervention and clarification 
which, he thought, helped to set the context for the request.  He indicated th at the request was being 
examined in his capital.  He suggested that Albani a undertake informal consultations with interested 
Members in advance of the considerati on of this item at the next meeting. 
32. Hoping he would respond to the questions raised by the representative of Japan, a 
representative of the Secretariat  said that the report of the Council for Trade in Services submitted to 
the General Council should include the waiver re quest stating the exceptional circumstances, the 
views expressed by Members as well as a recomme ndation for the decision to be adopted by the 
General Council acting on behalf of the Ministerial Conference.  Turning to the question concerning 
the rule of decision-making, he stated that in pr inciple a decision taken under Article IX:3 of the 
WTO Agreement should be made by three-fourth majority.  He further stated that there was a stipulation for decisions by consensus in relation to  this provision and that footnote 4 under it should 
also be taken into account.  He said that Members c ould approach to the Secret ariat if they sought any 
further clarification on the procedure. 
33. Noting that the Albania's request had gi ven rise to much interest, the Chairman
 suggested that 
Albania undertake consultations with Members and that  the Council take note of the statements made 
and revert to this item at next meeting.   
34. It was so agreed . 
E. TRANSITIONAL REVIEW UNDER SECTION 18 OF THE PROTOCOL OF ACCESSION 
OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA 
35. The Chairman  stated that Section 18 of the Accession Protocol of the People's Republic of 
China provided for an annual review of the implem entation by China of the WTO Agreement and of 
the related provisions of China's Accession Protocol.  As indicated in Section 18, the Services Council 
was one of the bodies in which this review was to be conducted.  He further stated that the results of 
the Services Council's review, as well as those bodies mentioned in Section 18 of the Protocol, would 
be reported to the General Council, which would conduct its own review. 
36. The Chairman noted that on 1 December 2003 th e Committee on Trade in Financial Services 
had conducted and had conc luded its transitional review under S ection 18 of China's Protocol of 
Accession and that its Chairman had submitted  a report contained in document S/FIN/11. 
37. The Chairman proposed that the Council take  note of the report from the Committee on Trade 
in Financial Services on the understanding that it w ould form part of the Services Council's report to 
the General Council. 
38. It was so decided . S/C/M/69 
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 39. The Chairman  drew the Council's attention to a communication made by the People's 
Republic of China, contained in document S/C/ W/234, which provided information required by 
Annex 1A to the Protocol.   
40. Regarding the present review, the Chairman sugg ested that it be conducted the same way as 
the previous year.  He would first invite the Pe ople's Republic of China to respond to comments and 
questions contained in the communications fro m Japan (S/C/W/228); the European Communities 
(S/C/W/229); Australia (S/C/W/230); Chinese Taipei (S/C/W/232); and the United States 
(S/C/W/233).  Members would then make comme nts and pose supplemental questions, and China 
would have opportunity to respond. 
41. The representative of China  thanked the Chairman and the Secr etariat for their efforts in the 
preparation of the current review.  He said that China had attached the same importance to it as the 
previous year, as witnessed by the delegation in attendance, which was composed of capital-based 
officials from the relevant services administrative au thorities, including the Ministry of Information 
Industry, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Communications, the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Commerce.  He hoped to take the opportunity to briefly describe the latest 
development of China's compliance with its WTO co mmitments regarding trade in services other than 
financial services. 
42. He stated that information required by Annex 1A to the China's Accession Protocol had been 
provided to the Council for Trade in Services and that  notifications had been made pursuant to Article 
III:3.  This included the status of market acce ss in sectors and sub-sectors listed in the China's 
Schedule of Specific Commitments; a list of admi nistrative authorities responsible for specific 
services sectors and sub-sectors; information on the independence of re gulatory authorities from 
service suppliers; information related to the MF N Exemption List; and laws, regulations and 
administrative measures directly related to market access in specific services sectors and sub-sectors. 
43. With respect to China's fulfilment of its commitments on the expansion of market access in 
services trade, he underlined that, despite enormous difficulties, China had continued with great 
efforts to implement its commitments  since the last review and that development had been achieved in 
this respect. 
44. Regarding improvement of the legal system and trade policy transparency, he stated that a 
series of new regulations and administrative rules governing trade in services had been promulgated 
since the previous review, which included the Regulation on Sino-Foreign Cooperative Educational 
Institutions ; the Implementing Rules on the Regulation on  International Maritime Transportation; the 
Rules governing the Foreign Invested  Urban Planning Service Enterprise s; the Provisional Rules on 
the Establishment of Travel Agencies with Ma jority Foreign Equity and Solely Foreign Investment ; 
the Rules on the Administration of Foreign invested  Enterprises for Book, Newspaper and Journal 
Distribution ; and etc.  He further stated that these regulations were in conformity with China's 
commitments and had consolidated the legal b asis on which market access opportunities for foreign 
service suppliers would be improved. 
45. He noted that China's services trade, particular ly the importation of services, had seen a rapid 
development with the implementation of China's co mmitments.  In 2002, China's importation of 
services increased by 21 percent and reached US$ 46 .5 billion, which made China the ninth largest 
service importer of the world.  China's services import volume for the first six months of 2003 was 
US$ 25.5 billion, which represented an increase of 14 percent over the same period in the preceding 
year.  He pointed out that this rapid expansion w as not only an indicator of growing demand of better 
services for China's economic development, but also a testimony to the enhanced exposure of China's 
services market to the outside world.  He also noted that as market access had improved, foreign 
direct investments to China's services sectors had grown.  A total of 5,540 new foreign-invested  S/C/M/69 
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 enterprises (FIEs) had been establis hed in China's services sectors in th e first seven months of 2003, 
which represented an increase of 28 percent over the same period of 2002 and accounted for 
25 percent of all the FIEs established.  The volum e of  actual investment in services sectors had 
reached US$ 8 billion, which represented 24 percent of the total foreign investment realized in China. 
46. Turning to changes in market  access for major sectors, the re presentative of China informed 
Members that with respect to distribution services, as of the end of August 2003, 35 foreign-invested 
enterprises with 347 outlets had been approved, whos e contractual value had reached US$ 310.  With 
respect to tourism services, in addition to the appr ovals granted to 11 sino-fore ign equity joint venture 
travel agencies since China's accession, China had a pproved one travel agency with foreign majority 
equity and one with 100 percent foreign capital.   On educational services, as of the end of 
October 2003, China's central and provincial educa tional authorities had approved 782 sino-foreign 
cooperative educational institutions and projects, of which 50 had been approv ed in 2003.  Regarding 
legal services, 23 new representative offices of fore ign law firms had been approved in China since 
accession, thereby increasing the total number of re presentative offices of foreign law firms in China 
to 162.  In addition, eight foreign-invested ci nemas, four foreign invested book and newspaper 
retailers and 43 cooperative medical institutions had been approved in China.  He stated that China 
was ahead of its implementation schedule in  certain areas.  He referred to the Provisional Rules on the 
Establishment of Travel Agencies with Major ity Foreign Equity and Solely Foreign Investment, which 
allowed the establishment of travel agencies with so lely foreign investment in certain cities upon the 
approval by State Council and National Tourism and Vacation Zones.  This step was three years 
ahead of China's accession commitments .  He further stated that China's implementation efforts in the 
sectors he had referred to, as well as its effectiv e endeavours to expand market access, had earned 
broad recognition and appreciation among Members and foreign investors.  Citing a statement 
appeared in 2003 Whitepaper on American Business in China , (a publication  jointly sponsored by the 
American Chamber of Commerce in China and AmCham  Shanghai,) he said that a vast majority of 
United States companies operating in China deem ed that business conditions and climate had 
improved substantially in the past five years: in 2003, 93 percent of respondents reported their five-
year business outlook in China as either optimistic or  cautiously optimistic.  This statement further 
reported that this finding had been remarkably cons istent for the past three years, indicating that 
member companies were sufficiently  confident to build and support long-term development strategies 
in the Chinese market. 
47. Before responding to comments and questions c ontained in the written communications, the 
representative of China noted that some of the comm unications had been circulated very late.   
48. Regarding a question on legal services, which sought a clarification on the requirement of 
"actual need to establish a represen tative office in China", he confirmed that there were no geographic 
and quantitative restrictions on representative offi ces of foreign law firms as indicated in China's 
commitments.  He suggested that the concerned Me mbers look at this issue in terms of the actual 
market access of foreign representative offices.  He stated that more than 50 representative offices of 
foreign law firms had been approve d in Beijing and Shanghai and that none of them had been subject 
to a so-called "Economic Needs Test". 
49. Responding to a concern on the conditions im posed on Chinese partners in joint-venture 
telecommunication enterprises, the repr esentative of China referred to the Provisions on the 
Administration of Foreign-invested  Telecommunication Enterprises .  He stated that, due to the need 
for complicated expertise and the new services emer ging in the telecom industry, this regulation 
required that the major Chinese investor in a fo reign-invested enterprise should have technical 
personnel suitable for the operation of the enterprise in order to better protect the interest of investors 
and consumers and to ensure the s ound development of the telecom industry.  He further stated that 
this requirement also applied to domestic enterpri ses, which was in line with the national treatment 
principle.  He noted that this regulation required th at the major Chinese investor  should invest at least S/C/M/69 
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 30 percent of the total capital shared by all the Chinese  investors in order to protect the interests of the 
Chinese and foreign-invested telecom enterprises.  He pointed out that these requirements increased 
the liability of the Chinese investors and therefore alle viated the risks on the part of foreign investors. 
50. Turning to a question regarding the entrustment procedure of the courier services, he recalled 
that the issue of an entrustment requirement fo r express delivery services had been discussed at the 
previous review.  He noted that in the past calendar year, 167 qualified international freight 
forwarding enterprises and 362 branches had obtaine d entrustment and had been operating quite well 
in China.  He stated that Chin a would assure the same procedure of entrustment for international 
courier agencies as for Chinese operators. 
51. With respect to a question regarding the c onditions and business scope set out in the new 
regulation on foreign construction enterprises,  he responded that China had provided many 
explanations and clarifications at the bilateral level during the preceding year in response to the 
concern of certain Members, and that China's pos ition had been made very clear.  He sought to 
reiterate several points.  First, Decree No. 113 of  the Ministry of Construction was in line with the 
principle of national treatment and China's commit ments in the construction and engineering sector, 
which applied a unified qualification standard to both domestic enterprises and foreign invested 
construction enterprises.  According to this decree,  wholly foreign-owned c onstruction enterprises had 
been allowed to be established as from 1 December 2 002, which he noted was two years ahead of the 
timeframe set out in China's commitments, and discr iminatory requirements against foreign invested 
construction companies in terms of qualification standa rd had been abolished.  He stated that this 
resulted in a further opening-up of construction market to foreign investors.  Second, he said that in 
order to guarantee commercial interests of foreign enterprises, the stability of transition, and the 
implementation of the existing contracts already signed by foreign companies, the  Implementing Rules 
on the Qualification Mana gement for Facilitating Foreign Enterprises to Invest in the Construction 
Sector  required that "for all the engineering contr acts signed before 1 October 2003, or contracts 
remaining valid after 1 October 2003, the foreign companies might continue to complete the works".  
Finally, he noted that the Ministry of C onstruction had promulgated Notice No. 193 in 
September 2003, which stipulated that those forei gn enterprises with Qualifications for Contracting 
Construction Works might prolong their engin eering construction activities in China until 
1 April 2004. 
52. Responding to a concern on the drafting of the new distribution regulation, the representative 
of China stated that the "Pilot Measures on th e Foreign-Invested Merchandising Enterprises", 
promulgated in 1999, had given foreign service suppliers the opportunity to possess majority 
ownership in the joint-venture wholesaling ente rprises, which was consistent with the China's 
commitment in market access.  He further stated that the drafting of the new distribution regulation 
governing wholesaling and retailing services was on-goi ng, and that it would provide more detailed 
rules on the opening-up of the distribution market in accordance with the phase-in commitments of 
China.  He said that China had started to solicit opinions on this draft from industries, including 
foreign-invested distribution enterprises.  He noted that the actual market access had never been 
negatively affected.  He recalled that 35 foreign- invested distribution enterprises had been approved 
with 347 outlets.  Carrefour and Wal-mart had resp ectively established more than 30 chain stores in 
China. 
53. Finally, the representative of China noted that some questions posed by Members were not 
relevant to the TRM.  He said that trading rights,  which directly related to trade in goods and had 
already been reviewed in the Council for Trade in Goods, should not be dealt with in the Council for 
Trade in Services.  Regarding questions on the Closer Economic Partners hip Arrangement between 
Hong Kong, China and China (CEPA), he responded  that China would notify the relevant WTO 
bodies of the CEPA in due time.  With respect to questions concerning the regulation on mergers and 
acquisitions, he stated that China had no obligatio n on this issue in its WTO schedule.  He further  S/C/M/69 
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 stated that the issue of mergers and acquisitions was related to the context of competition policy or 
investment policy, which was not covered by exis ting WTO rules.  He recalled that the Doha Round 
had not concluded and felt that Memb ers should not show haste in this regard.  As to a concern on the 
drafting of China's Telecommunications Law as well as th e revision of the Postal Law, he stated that 
China took a positive attitude towards Members' keen in terest.  He pointed out, however, that enacting 
a new law and revising existing ones, even if they aimed at implementing obligations under 
international treaties, were the legitimate rights of a Member and that the TRM was not the right 
context in which to address these issues. 
54. The representative of China thanke d the Chairman and the Secretar iat again for their efforts in 
the preparation of the review and he invited Memb ers to make comments and raise questions on his 
presentation.   
55. The representative of the European Communities  thanked the Chinese delegation for the 
statement it had made.  His delegation was  aware that China had made considerable efforts to 
improve its legislation to implement its GATS commit ments.  He further stated that the European 
Communities had noted the progress made by China in  several services sectors over the preceding 
year and expressed his delegation's appreciation to  the Chinese authorities for having engaged in 
substantive dialogues on the remaining questions a nd for having improved their legislation in a 
number of areas.  He said that the European Comm unities attached crucial importance to its trade 
relations with China, which, he noted , was one of its main partners.   
56. He said that, in preparing for the current re view, the European Communities had compiled its 
questions on trade in services and had sent them in a dvance to China.  He st ated that the European 
Communities appreciated China's cooperation in th e multilateral TRM exercise, and its willingness to 
provide replies to some of the questions put fort h.  Noting that China recently had notified a number 
of laws and regulations to the Council, he than ked China for its goodwill and efforts in terms of 
transparency.  He stated that the European Communities had receive d these notifications recently and 
would need time to analyze the corresponding laws  and regulations.  He said that the European 
Communities had already contacted the Chinese GATS enquiry point in Beijing and was looking 
forward to receiving the documents requested.  He  indicated that the European Communities would 
appreciate the willingness to provide these regulations in English as this would facilitate work.  He 
also indicated his intention to make comments and seek clarifications on a few questions.   
57. Turning to more specific comments and requests for clarifications and starting with 
telecommunications services, the representative of the European Communities reiterated the need to 
revise and further develop the Chinese regulatory fr amework to bring it in line with China's WTO 
commitments, notably as regarded the choice of a partner and conditions imposed on the Chinese 
partner. 
58. On construction services, he said that this sector was a high priority for the European 
Communities.  He expressed his delegation's hope that  China would be willing to work together with 
them on the new regulatory framework so as to ensu re that conditions imposed on foreign contractors 
were reasonable, in compliance with China's GATS co mmitments, and not more restrictive than they 
had been under the previous system. 
59. Regarding postal services, he sought further clar ifications on the planned scope of the postal 
monopoly, the scope of universal service, and the independence of regulators.   
60. On tourism services, he noted that the questi on on the ENT for new travel agencies had not 
been answered.  In conclusion, the representativ e again expressed his gratitude to the Chinese 
delegation. S/C/M/69 
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 61. The representative of Japan  expressed his delegation's apprecia tion to the delegation of China 
for its explanations, and China's efforts to implement its WTO commitments and their active 
participation in the TRM.  He said that Japan attached a great importance to this exercise and 
therefore had presented questions to China well in a dvance of the meeting.  He sought to follow up 
some of the points raised in the China's presentati on as well as questions raised by Japan in document 
S/C/W/228 that had not been fully answered.   
62. Regarding telecommunications services and referri ng to questions contained in paragraphs 
7-11 of document S/C/W/228, he said he took note of China's statement on Members' right to amend 
and improve national legislations and that Japan was not against this as a basic concept.  He stated, 
however, that information on when and how the Chinese Telecommunications Act would be enacted 
would be helpful in understanding the implementation of China's GATS commitments.  He reiterated 
that his delegation sought to know the schedule of th e enactment of this regulation.  He also reiterated 
Japan's concerns on the criteria and list of "L eading Telecommunication Services Providers" as well 
as the formula for the calculation of interconnection fees.  He also sought a clarification on the Telecommunication Services Classification List. 
63. With respect to construction services, he noted that a new regulation had come into effect on 
1 October 2003 and had been implemented.  He i ndicated, however, Japan's concern that certain 
requirements, such as requirements for a minimum num ber of engineers, would be too burdensome in 
view of Article VI:5 of the GATS.  He sought a cl arification on the level of domestic regulation in 
committed areas. 
64. Regarding distribution services, he expressed an in terest in having more specific information 
on the new regulation mentioned in the Chinese presenta tion.  He stated that the Chinese distribution 
sector involved many different regulations and rules including those referred to in paragraphs 16-17 
of Japan's communication regarding the retailing of automobiles.  He asked which was regulation the 
representative of China had referred to. 
65. On trading rights and agreeing that it was also related to trade in goods, the representative of 
Japan stated that it had an important impact on investments by service providers.  He said that the 
Japanese services business community had repeatedly  expressed their concern with the delay in 
implementation of commitments related to trading rights and that this was also one of the major 
concerns of various Japanese services sectors.  Reiterating his view that trading rights were not totally 
irrelevant to trade in services, he requested a fu rther explanation on it from the Chinese delegation.   
66. Seeking further information from the delegati on of China and referring to the question on 
distribution services, the representative of the United States
 inquired as to whether, in preparing any 
law in the process of implementing its commitments, China intended to circulate draft regulations for 
public comment consistent with pa ragraph 2(C)2 of the Protocol of Accession, and when these might 
be accessible.  While acknowledging that the amendment of law per se  was a matter of sovereignty, 
she stated that China had committed to allow fo r public comment before a law was implemented.  
Noting that China was undergoing consultations with  various interested parties, she expressed her 
Government's wish to participate in this process in  light of  paragraph 2( C)2 of the Protocol of 
Accession.  With respect to the Chinese commitm ent to permit foreign service suppliers to supply 
wholesaling services and commission agents' services th rough majority foreign-owned joint ventures 
subject to certain exceptions and within two y ears after accession (or by 11 December 2003), she said 
that she had taken note of the statement made by the Chinese delegation.  She underlined the 
importance her delegation attached to seeing the ne w distribution services legislation, particularly 
given the timing when commitments had already or w ould come into effect.  She stated that China 
appeared to have fallen behind in implementi ng its commitments regarding wholesaling services and 
commission agents' services insofa r as they related to foreign-i nvested enterprises seeking to 
distribute goods made by other ente rprises in China or imported goods.  She further stated that to date,  S/C/M/69 
 Page 11 
 
 
 China had only opened up wholesaling services a nd commission agents' services to minority foreign 
ownership joint ventures that could satisfy a number of stringent qualificati on requirements and other 
restrictions relating to registered capital, assets, wholesale volume, past import and export levels and 
prior experience.  She expressed the hope that these measures would not in fact nullify any 
commitments that allowed market opening. 
67. With respect to delivery services, she comme nded China on the circulation of draft 
amendments to its Postal Services Law.  She note d, however, that the draft amendments purported to 
give China Post a monopoly over the delivery of letters under 500 grams, which would constitute a 
new restriction on the scope of activities of existin g foreign-invested express delivery companies, in 
apparent conflict with the horizontal "acquired rights" commitment that China had made in its 
services Schedule.  She further noted that the draf t amendments had not addressed the need for an 
independent regulator.  She noted that the latest draf t of the amendments appeared to give China Post 
a monopoly on letters weighing under 500 grams, and did not clearly separate China Post's regulatory 
and operational functions.  She sough t a clarification from the Chinese delegation in this regard.  She 
also expressed a concern on a provision in the draft amendments which required express delivery 
companies to pay 4 percent of their revenues into a universal service fund.   
68. Regarding telecommunications services, the re presentative of the United States noted that 
China had not yet established an independent regula tor, as the Ministry of Information Industries 
(MII) was not structurally and financially separ ate from all telecommunications operators and 
providers.  She sought a clarification from the Chine se delegation on this issue and emphasized that it 
related to a specific commitment recorded in paragraph 2(C)2 of the Protocol of Accession.  Finally, 
she pointed out that the MII had reclassified several telecommunications services from the value-
added category to the basic category, contrary to widely-accepted international practice and, in some 
instances, in apparent contravention of China’s scheduled commitments. 
69. The representative of Australia  stated that his Government took seriously the implementation 
of China's accession commitments and specifically rai sed questions related to the telecommunications 
sector.  He said that Australia continued to place a high priority on telecommunications services as a 
vital economic activity as well as a trade in servic es in its own right.  Noting that China was an 
important WTO Member and a market for Australia, he stated that China's implementation of its 
accession commitments was of significant interest to  Australia.  With respect to market access and 
national treatment commitments as well as the te lecommunications Reference Paper, he commended 
on China's implementation as an example for other Memb ers.  He noted that there existed a variety of 
interpretations of the Reference Paper obligations across the membership.  He further noted that 
Members agreed that latitude was provided for in  some paragraphs of the Reference Paper for 
different models of telecommunications competition.  He stated that the TRM provided an insight into 
China's understanding of its obligations and its in tentions for fulfilling those obligations.   
70. Turning to some specific questions on tel ecommunications services, the representative of 
Australia said that Australia sought to  understand the extent to which the Regulations on the 
Administration of Foreign-Invested  Telecommunications Enterprises  (FITE Regulations) had been 
successful in facilitating foreign participation in  China’s domestic telecommunications services 
market.  In this regard, he asked how many FI TE applications had been lodged and of the FITE 
applications lodged, how many ha d been approved, as well as how many FITEs had been issued with 
a Telecommunications Business Operational Permit.  Echoing comments by the United States and 
Japan, he also raised the issue of the Telecommunications Service Classification Catalogue . 
71. Finally, he took note that China was currently finalising the drafting of its 
Telecommunications Law, and that the drafters of the new law were consulting with leading domestic 
Chinese operators in order to obta in their comments and suggestions.  While Australia regarded these 
consultations as very positive, he s uggested that the process would benefit from inclusion of interested S/C/M/69 
Page 12 
 
 
 foreign parties who wished to participate in th e domestic Chinese telecommunications market.  He 
stated that foreign operators, in commenting on th e draft law, would be able to draw on their 
experience in other jurisdictions.  He expressed th e hope that China would hold consultations on the 
new law with interested foreign parties. 
72. The representative of Chinese Taipei  thanked China for its hard work on the implementation 
of its commitments as well as for the statement which had contained relevant information which 
replied to comments and questions tabled by her de legation and other delegations.  She stated that, as 
a major trading partner of China, her delegation felt it an obligation to identify a number of legitimate 
concerns in areas particularly in telecommunications and professional services.  She further stated that 
China's smooth and faithful implementation of its acc ession commitments was in the interest of all the 
Members, including China itself.  She expressed appreciation for the notifications China had made recently on rules and regulations in the context of transparency.   
73. Referring to the various follow-up questions that  had been asked, the representative of China
 
said that, with respect to the question on accountin g services which related to the qualification of a 
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in China, any accountant from any other WTO Member who 
wished to apply for a license to practice as a CP A in China had to have accumulated at least two 
years’ experience and must have one year of resi dency and a fixed residence or fixed contact point 
within China.  He noted that this kind of qualifi cation requirement, which rela ted to Articles VI:4 and 
VI:6 of the GATS, was under discussion by Members in the Working Party on Domestic Regulation.   
74. Turning to concerns on telecommunication servi ces and referring to the question raised by 
Australia regarding how many FITE applications had been approved, he suggested that Australia refer 
to the communication his delegation had recently pr esented pursuant to Annex 1A to the Accession 
Protocol.   
75. With respect to the question on the definition of "leading telecommunication services 
providers", he stated that "leading telecommuni cation services providers" were those providers who 
possessed necessary basic telecom fac ilities, whose fixed local telephone business represented greater 
than 50 percent shares of the mark et within local networks, and who had a substantial impact on the 
market access of other telecom operators.  To date, the operators meeting these requirements were 
China Telecom and China Netcom.  He noted that, given the actual situation of the telecom market 
and the rapid growth of mobile telecom business,  the MII was considering including more leading 
telecom operators.   
76. With respect to transparency  issues concerning, for instan ce, the current formula for 
interconnection fees and the possible revision of the terms and conditions of individual licences, he 
referred to the relevant regulations, such as Regulations on the Methods for the Settlement of Inter-
network Call Charge , and Administrative Measures on Licensing  for Operation of Telecommunication 
Services .  He indicated that these regulations , published on the website of MII ( www.mii.gov.cn ), 
were domestic regulation that app lied to all suppliers equally.  He stated that a regulation governing 
basic telecommunications licenses through public tend er was currently under study and elaboration. 
77. Regarding the concerns expressed about China’ s implementation of the Reference Paper on 
Basic Telecommunications, on matters such as indepe ndent regulator and inte rconnection, he referred 
to the Regulation on Telecommunications of PRC  and the Regulation on Interconnection Between 
Public Telecommunication Networks .  According to these regulations, leading telecom operators 
should develop rules on interconnection and re port them to the MII for approval prior to 
implementation.  He noted that leading telecom ope rators should provide inte rconnections within the 
specified time limits.  They were neither allo wed to deny request for interconnection from other 
telecom operators and private network operators nor permitted to freely restrict the right of users to 
chose the telecom services provided by other ope rators.  As well, in offering inter-network  S/C/M/69 
 Page 13 
 
 
 connections to other telecom operators, the servi ce quality of leading operators should be as good as 
that of like services within their own networks or  that of like services supplied to subsidiaries or 
branches.  He stated that leading telecom operato rs had an obligation to coordinate with users 
acquiring telecom network code number resources in order to realize the function of the resources, 
with necessary technical measures.   
78. With respect to a question about the independe nce of the regulator, the representative of 
China noted that China had separated the re gulatory body from the operational business by 
establishing the Ministry of Information Industry (M II) in 1998.  He further noted that the MII had 
given up all its management functions to China Teleco m.  He stated that the MII could regulate in an 
impartial, fair and transparent manner and acted as an independent regulator.  He indicated that the 
MII had always followed the principle of transparen cy and impartiality in order to promote the orderly 
development of China’s telecom industry.   
79. Regarding the classification of telecommunication services, he noted that it was a complicated 
issue not only for China, but also for other WTO Me mbers, especially given the rapid development of 
contemporary science and technology.  He further noted that Members had th eir own classifications 
based on the different level of development in te lecom industries, unique do mestic situations and 
different approaches to regulate the market.  He in dicated that the MII had adjusted part of the 
previous categories and had republished the revised  Catalogue of classification in April 2003 in 
response to new developments.  According to the new catalogue, some basic telecommunications 
services would be managed as value-added services.  He noted that the operator qualifications and daily management of these basic telecommunications  services would be administered with reference 
to relevant requirements for value-added services.  He referred to Article 9 of the Regulation on 
Telecommunications , which stipulated that "New types of telecom services other than those in the 
Catalogue of Telecom Service Classifications that are carried out on a experimental basis using new 
technologies should be submitted to telecom regulatory authorities at the provincial level for record".  
He stated that the MII was in the process of considering and developing detailed rules on 
qualifications and procedures on recording new services,  and that it was expected that these would be 
adopted in the near future. 
80. Turning to questions on courier services, he recalled that the issue of the revision of the Postal 
Law had been addressed in the previous statement made by his delegation.  Regarding monopoly and 
exclusive rights, he recalled China's reservation in its commitments, which st ated "except for those 
currently specifically reserved to Chinese postal aut horities by law".  With respect to the independent 
regulator, he referred to paragraph 309 of the Working Party Report, which stated that "the 
representative of China confirmed that for ser vices included in China's Schedule of Specific 
Commitments, relevant regulatory authorities woul d be separated from, and not accountable, to any 
service suppliers they regulated, except for courier and railway transportation services". 
81. Regarding the concern on distribution services regulations, he stated that the current 
regulation governing this sector was the Pilot Measures on the Foreign-Invested Merchandising 
Enterprises  and that China was drafting a new dist ribution regulation gove rning wholesaling and 
retailing services.  He reiterated that China was star ting to solicit opinions from industries.  With 
respect to a question on the dual distribution system for automobiles, his delegation was of the view 
that this policy did not violate WTO rules or China's commitments and that foreign and domestic 
investors would be treated equally in establishing automobile distribution enterprises selling either 
imported cars or domestically produced cars.  He indicated that his delegation had noted certain 
Members’ concern in this regard and would study it with competent authorities.  Turning to questions 
on future liberalization such as the opening-up of di stribution of processed oil and crude oil, and on 
permitting wholly foreign-owned freight forwarding subsidiaries four years after accession, he stated 
that China would implement its commitments in ac cordance with the phase-in period set out in its 
Schedule.   S/C/M/69 
Page 14 
 
 
 82. With respect to a clarification sought on th e approval of travel agencies subject to "the 
development plan of travelling industry", he referred to the Administrative Rules on Travel Agencies , 
which stipulated that the examination and approval of applications for the establishment of travelling 
agencies must be in line with the development plan of travel industry.  He stat ed that this requirement, 
which applied equally to domestic travel agencies,  was to regulate the whol e Chinese travel agency 
market and did not constitute a market access limitation.   
83. Finally, regarding a question on the maritime  transportation, the representative of China 
responded that the regulatory system on non-v essel operating common carriers (NVOCC) was to 
administrate those carriers which did not physically op erate vessels, but issued bills of lading in their 
names.  He stated that this system was regulated  by the Ministry of Comm unication, and that by 
issuing bills of lading and collecting freights, NVO CCs bore the liabilities of carriers.  He explained 
that the purpose of the payment of 800 000  Yuan as surety bond, as required by the Regulations on 
International Maritime Transportation , was to protect the lawful interests of cargo owners and to 
maintain the normal order of the cargo transport market.   
84. The representative of the United States  stated that her delegation was still unclear about 
China's interpretation of paragraph 309 which app eared to refer to transportation services of two 
particular types, and said her delega tion would revert to this issue at  some point.  While reiterating her 
delegation's appreciation for China's efforts to draf t legislation as quickly as possible, she insisted 
that, with respect to legislation for which the impl ementation dates had either passed or would pass in 
the following days, her government sought to look at  those pieces of legislation before they were 
implemented and enforced, as required by para graph 2(C)2 of the Protocol of Accession. 
85. The Chairman  thanked China for its responses and s uggested that before moving on to the 
issue of the report to the General Council, the Coun cil take note of the statements made and conclude 
the second transitional review mechanism pursuant to  Section 18 of China's Protocol of Accession. 
86. It was so decided . 
87. Regarding the report to the General Council, the Chairman  suggested that the Secretariat 
prepare a factual report stating:  that pursuant to Section 18 of the Protocol on the Accession of the 
People's Republic of China, the Council for Trad e in Services conducted the second review of the 
implementation by China of the WTO Agreement and of  the related provisions of the Protocol, in its 
meeting held on 5 December 2003;  that written co mmunications had been received from five WTO 
Members, namely, Japan, the European Commun ities, Australia, Chinese Taipei, and the United 
States; and that the details of the discussion could be  found in the meeting report.   As agreed earlier in 
the meeting, the Report from the Committee on Trade in Financial Services (S/FIN/11) would form 
part of the Services Council's report. 
88. It was so decided . 
F. IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE VII OF THE GATS 
89. The Chairman  recalled that the Council had held discussion on this item at its meetings in 
July and October based on an informal note from the delegation of India contained in document 
JOB(03)/120.  Some twenty delegations had made st atements at that time and, given the level of 
interest, the Council had agreed to revert to this item.   
90. The representative of India  stated that India had introduced its informal note at the meeting of 
the Council for Trade in Services in July which ha d generated much discussion in July, and less 
discussion at the meeting in October.  He noted that during the course of discussions one of the points 
raised by India and referred to by other Members,  related to the issue of delegated authority.  He  S/C/M/69 
 Page 15 
 
 
 recalled that Members had indicated their wish to re vert to this issue in subsequent meetings.  He 
expressed the hope that Members would revert to this item either at the present meeting or at a 
subsequent meeting of the Council for Trade in Servi ces.  He stated that his delegations had its own 
view on the issue of delegated authority, that this area had a great bearing on market excess 
commitments especially in professional services and that it related to the non-discriminatory 
obligation under Article VII:3 of the GATS.  He fe lt that Members would benefit from notifications 
made to the Council for Trade in Services.  He drew  the Council’s attention to a previous Secretariat 
list of existing notifications and suggested that the Council look at the issue of delegated authority in 
terms of the notifications on the table.  He wondered whether the Secretariat could make a 
contribution in this regard, with the help of the notifying Members and without any prejudice to 
Members’ positions on this issue.   
91. He said that the issue of Article VII:3 of the GATS was not very clear in terms of how 
obligations would be met.  He believed that it would be of great benefit if Members who had 
experience with recognition agreements could share information on the issue.  He referred to the 
presentation made by New Zealand at an earlier meeting of the Working Party on Domestic 
Regulation in the context of Article VI:6 of th e GATS.  Noting that this presentation had helped 
Members to better understand the implementation of Ar ticle VI:6, he suggested that similar exercise 
be undertaken with respect to Article  VII:3.  Finally, he drew the C ouncil’s attention to paragraph 9 of 
India's note, which suggested that the Council improve  the content of notifications in terms of the 
service sectors/sub-sectors addressed, and make available the text of agreements to the Secretariat.  He stated that, were texts available to the Secretar iat, any interested Member could obtain a copy and 
forward it to capital or to professional bodies that might ha ve an interest in a particular agreement.  He 
expressed his hope that Members would reflect on some of the points he made. 
92. The representative of New Zealand
 supported the India's statement on the importance of the 
issue of delegated authority and on the treatment of recognition agreements.  While noting that the 
note presented by her delegation to the Workin g Party on Domestic Regulation had addressed a 
slightly different aspect of the two issues, she felt th at they had some bearing on further discussions in 
this area and were topics on which the Council would be reverting at future meetings. 
93. Referring to his suggestion for a contribution fro m the Secretariat, the representative of India  
clarified that suggestion that the Council look at the existing notifications made under Article VII of 
the GATS. 
94. The representative of the United States  sought a clarification on the India's request.  She 
asked whether the Secretariat would be asked to collect information or prepare a list of existing 
notifications that were already on the table.  She said that if the request was made with a specific 
purpose in mind, her delegation would probably have a problem with it. 
95. The representative of India  confirmed that what he had requested was only factual 
information without other particular perspective in mind. 
96. The Chairman  suggested that the Council take note of the statements made and that it revert 
to this issue at its next meeting. 
97. It was so agreed . 
G. OTHER  BUSINESS   
98. As he had indicated at the beginning of the meeting, the Chairman  w i s h e d  t o  m a k e  a  
statement regarding the designation of chairpersons  of the subsidiary bodies to the Council for Trade 
in Services for 2004.  He noted that pursuant to the rules of procedure (S/L/15), the election of the S/C/M/69 
Page 16 
 
 
 new chairpersons should take place at the first meeting of the year and should take effect at the end of 
that meeting.  He informed the Council his inte ntion to engage in consultations on the list of 
chairpersons of the subsidiary bodies at the beginning of the new year.   
99. Recalling this had been discussed at the meeting of the Working Party on Domestic 
Regulation, the representative of the United States  sought clarifications regarding the dates of the next 
cluster.   
100. The Chairman  responded that the Secretariat would take  necessary steps to ensure that the 
information would be communicated to the dele gation of the United States as soon as possible. 
101. The representative of the United States  expressed her concern on th e opportunity to have an 
agreement among Members on the dates of the next clus ter.  She said that if this issue would not be 
settled at the current meeting, she would have to re port to her capital that the question remained open. 
102. The Chairman  repeated his response that the Secretariat would reply to the question of dates 
as soon as possible. 
103. The representative of Philippines  suggested that the Chairman of the Council as well as the 
Director of the Services Division undertake consulta tions with the Chairman of the General Council 
and other concerned officers of the various bodies.  He felt that the problem essentially arose from the 
conflict between the proposed scheduling of the Ge neral Council and the cluster of meetings of the 
Council for Trade in Services in February.  He s uggested that once this problem was resolved, the 
Chairman could proceed with consultations with interested Members on the appropriate schedule for 
the next cluster of services meetings and then coul d notify the Members at large of the dates fixed. 
104. The representative of the United States  stated that this issue had been discussed in the 
Working Party on Domestic Regulation and that the Secretariat had circulated optional dates of the 
next cluster.  She further stated that her delega tion and a few other delegations could not accept those 
dates.  She recalled that the Secretariat had also pr oposed another set of dates, namely the week of 
23 February 2004.  She sought some feedback from the Secretariat on the progress in settling the 
dates of the next cluster so that her dele gation could make the appropriate planning. 
105. The representative of Switzerland  stated that his delegation was among the delegations that 
had been expressing their concern about the dates for the future cluster.  He understood that the dates 
submitted by the Secretariat were preliminary and that no formal decision had been taken in this 
regard.  He said that his delegation was also among those that might have a problem with the dates 
originally proposed.  He expressed his support for the Chairman’s suggestion on consultations and 
hoped that an appropriate solution to this question would be found. 
106. The Chairman  suggested that he proceed with cons ultations with interested Members in 
liaison  with the Secretariat and that a reply be given to  Members.  Before he adjourned the meeting, 
the Chairman further suggested that the Council take note of all the statements.   
107. It was so agreed .   
 
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