WTO Members Far Apart On Bali Deal, Promise Cross-Cutting Effort In Fall

摘要

With roughly eight work weeks to go before a December ministerial meeting, members of the World Trade Organization remain far apart in their effort to agree on a package of concessions on trade facilitation, agricultural obligations, and issues related to least developed countries, according to the statements made at a July 22 meeting of the Trade Negotiations Committee (TNC). "[W]e have to soberly admit that the current pace of work remains too slow to guarantee a harvest" at the ministerial meeting, Chinese Ambassador Yi Xiaozhun warned. "We have to do some serious thinking during the summer break." Notwithstanding this acknowledgment of lagging progress, WTO members, including the United States, insisted that it is still possible to deliver a small package of trade concessions in time for the ministerial in Bali, Indonesia, by stepping up work in the fall with a higher level of political involvement.