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Following is a speech by the Under Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Gregory So, at the informal gathering of ministers responsible for the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Doha Round negotiations on May 27, Paris time:
I am pleased to be here this morning to join distinguished colleagues in our discussion on moving forward the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations. I would like to thank Simon (Crean) (Australian Minister for Trade) for organising and hosting this important gathering.
It is clear that the basis of our economic recovery is still fragile. This is evident from, for example, the reaction of the financial market to the euro economic crisis. And, if the recovery is a jobless one, worse protectionist pressures than we have so far seen may rear up, and curtail further growth. Concluding the Doha Round as an effective tool to ward off protectionism is therefore all the more important and urgent.
The March stock-taking exercise did not achieve as desirable an outcome as we could have wished for. But we are encouraged that members remained fully engaged, and the stock-taking reinforced the need to maintain the multilateral dimension at the centre of our negotiations. Since then, meetings of variable geometry have been held both on individual negotiating subjects and at a horizontal level in order to build up further consensus and minimise gaps. Pascal (Lamy) (Director-General of the WTO) has also been meeting various groups to help take forward the negotiations. These are all commendable efforts, and we have seen reasonable progress made in a number of areas in the various negotiating groups.
At a time when collective political energy is not adequate to seal the deal, the Geneva-based process, centred on chair-led negotiating groups, must go on. I would ask that ministers continue supporting our Geneva-based negotiators fully, and keep the momentum going by giving them greater flexibility in key negotiating areas. I appreciate that members must be answerable to their respective domestic constituencies, but constructive engagement to find pragmatic solutions is essential to achieving success.
In continuing this process, we must also seek to ensure transparency. This is important for building trust, as being kept in the dark is a key concern of many members. There should also be a way of bridging bilateral and plurilateral activities across to the multilateral process. In that way, bilateral and plurilateral outcomes can be multilateralised and members can respond constructively to any new developments.
The prolonged negotiations have sorely tested the patience of many, especially developing and least-developed members. As a result, there have been a few calls for an early harvest. This proposition has its attractions for some, but we should be aware of the risks of departing from the principle of the Single Undertaking. Any decision to introduce new elements to the balanced equation has to be carefully weighed, and we must not unravel what we have achieved with such difficulty over the past eight years.
But I do not mean to say that we cannot try to set aside, on a provisional basis, those issues on which early agreement can be reached. In fact, we consider this approach could help provide greater clarity as to the shape of the final deal - not just in Agriculture and NAMA (Non-Agricultural Market Access), but also in other equally important areas, such as Services, Trade Facilitation and Rules. It would also help provide new impetus to the negotiating process. We think this is worth pursuing and we would like to hear other views and ideas in this regard.
No matter how solid the technical foundation may be, the DDA negotiations cannot bear fruit unless the political will is there. We therefore need to grasp every opportunity to provide further political impetus to move the round forward. Not only today here in Paris but also during the APEC MRT (Ministers Responsible for Trade) meeting next week and the G-20 meeting in Toronto. Hong Kong, China, will continue to give our full support to any efforts seeking to break the current deadlock.
Thank you.
Ends/Friday, May 28, 2010
Issued at HKT 11:54
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