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IV. World Trade Organization1 IV. World Trade 1 Organization The Director-General of the World Trade now posted immediately on the website. Organization (WTO), Renato Ruggiero, referred to 1997 as WTO’s “golden year” in the light of the Following on the results of the Singapore major successes realized by the organization and its Ministerial Conference in December 1996, WTO members. Three important trade agreements were members engaged in far-reaching discussions on achieved in 1997: an agreement on trade in basic the “new” issues of investment, trade and telecommunications services covering more than 95 competition policy, and transparency in percent of the global market for government procurement, with each of the new telecommunications; a landmark agreement to working groups actively pursuing their mandates in eliminate tariffs on information technology 1997. In addition, members satisfied their products among countries accounting for nearly 95 Singapore commitment to the least-developed percent of trade in information technology countries with a highly successful high-level products; and a most-favored-nation (MFN) meeting in October which produced an integrated agreement on trade in financial services covering and coordinated technical assistance plan for these $18 trillion in global securities assets, $38 trillion countries. in global domestic bank lending, and $2.2 trillion in world wide insurance premiums. In many ways, 1997 served to clearly demonstrate that significant the truly impressive agreements concluded under success in trade liberalization and rule-making is WTO auspices in 1997 reflect a closing of the final possible in the context of the still-young WTO even unfinished chapter of the Uruguay Round, and a without the structure associated with past “rounds” challenge to continue producing high quality of multilateral trade negotiations. As we approach market-opening agreements on an accelerated WTO’s second Ministerial Conference, scheduled basis. for May 18-19, 1998, we can acknowledge great satisfaction with the operation of the WTO system 1997 saw WTO membership increase to 132 to date. The United States continues to have a countries and customs territories, with active broad-based agenda of issues to pursue in the negotiations under way in connection with WTO in 1998, ranging from implementation of applications from 311 non-members. Recourse to Agreements to new challenges, such as Global the dispute settlement system reached an all-time Economic Commerce and new market access high in 1997 and many longstanding problems were initiatives, and to the business of the WTO and finally resolved through panel and Appellate Body negotiations already agreed. The sections which decisions. Big gains were realized in transparency follow describe in greater detail the activities of WTO activities, in no small part as a result of pursued in WTO over the course of 1997 and the WTO’s highly successful Internet website prospects for progress in 1998. (http://www.wto.org) where well over 30, 000 users in a given month have cumulatively downloaded over 5 million pages of WTO text and information. Final dispute settlement reports are 1 The information in this section is provided pursuant to the reporting requirements contained in sections 122 and 124 of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act. WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION 37 Looking Ahead to May 1998 Implementation of the and Beyond WTO Agreements WTO’s Second Ministerial General Council Activities Conference Status The Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization provides that the Members of the WTO shall meet at ministerial level at least once The WTO General Council is the highest decision- every two years. The WTO’s second Ministerial making body in the WTO that meets on a regular Conference, scheduled to meet in Geneva on 18-19 basis each year. It exercises all of the authority of May, 1998, will be an important opportunity to the Ministerial Conference, which is only required take stock of progress made in the work program in to meet once every two years. The General the period since Singapore and chart the members’ Council and Ministerial Conference consist of course for the remainder of the decade. representatives of all WTO members. Only the Ministerial Conference and the General Council While plans for the May 1998 meeting will not be have the authority to adopt authoritative finalized in all respects as this text goes to print, interpretations of the WTO Agreements, submit we can expect that the coming Ministerial amendments to the agreements for consideration by Conference will focus on what needs to be done by members, and grant waivers of obligations. All way of preparation for the major negotiations in accessions to the WTO must be approved by the 1999-2000 called for in the WTO’s so-called General Council or the Ministerial Conference. “built-in agenda” (see Annex). Members are already mandated to conduct across-the-board Technically, meetings of both the Dispute negotiations in agriculture and services and many Settlement Body (DSB) and the Trade Policy feel that liberalization in these sectors should be Review Body (TPRB) are meetings of the General balanced by new negotiations on industrial tariffs. Council convened for the purpose of discharging With this in mind, a natural outcome to the May the responsibilities of the DSB and TPRB. meeting will be a ministerial-level directive to the General Council to return for the WTO’s third Three major bodies report directly to the General Ministerial Conference in 1999 with a plan to Council: the Council for Trade in Goods, the launch negotiations in these and possibly other Council for Trade in Services, and the Council for areas, and to implement market access and other Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property new agreements concluded this year. Rights (TRIPS). To ensure a coherent and integrated process of decision-making in the WTO, Coincident with the second Ministerial Conference, all subsidiary bodies report up through this WTO Members have agreed to commemorate 50 hierarchy, with the exception of the Committee on years of the multilateral trading system in a special Trade and Environment, the Committee on Trade event set for May 20, 1998. and Development, the Committee on Balance of Payments Restrictions, the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration, and the Committee on Regional Trading Arrangements, which all report directly to the General Council. In 1997 and 1998, the working groups established in Singapore to examine investment, trade and competition policy, and transparency in government procurement also report directly to the General Council. 38 1997 ANNUAL REPORT The General Council uses both formal and informal permit them to operate regional preferential trade processes to conduct the business of the WTO. In arrangements. Three such waivers apply to the practice, informal groupings, which always include United States and are concerned with: the Andean the United States, may initiate the process of Trade Preference Act; the Caribbean Basin consensus-building. Formal meetings of the Economic Recovery Act; and, preferences for the General Council are necessary for informally- Former Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. At developed consensus to be translated into actual the same meeting, the General Council approved a decisions. waiver for Hungary designed to bring Hungarian agricultural export subsidies back into line with Major Issues in 1997 Hungary’s Uruguay Round schedule over a set period of time. This waiver represented a mutually Second Ministerial Conference: At several satisfactory solution in a dispute settlement action meetings over the course of the year, the General brought against Hungary by the United States and Council debated different aspects of the WTO’s several other WTO members. (The Annex to this second Ministerial Conference. In July, the chapter contains the list of waivers currently in General Council decided that the Ministerial force). Conference should be held on 18-19 May 1998, and that it should be followed by a special event on Accessions: In the course of the year, new working 20 May 1998 designed to celebrate fifty years of parties were established to consider the the multilateral trading system. At its meeting of membership applications received from Azerbaijan 10 December, 1997, the General Council decided and Andorra and chairpersons were designated for on reporting arrangements in connection with the already-established working parties concerned with Ministerial Conference and agreed that the accessions of Georgia and the Seychelles. consultations on other aspects of the meeting would Panama completed its domestic ratification be intensified in 1998. procedures and became a member of the WTO in the second half of 1997, bringing the total number High-Level Meeting for LLDCs: At its meeting on of WTO members to 132 as of year-end 1997. 7 October 1997, the General Council took up proposals in connection with the meeting agreed at Establishment Activities: The WTO is sui generis Singapore for the purpose of coordinating technical and is not a specialized agency of the United assistance to least- developed countries. The High- Nations. Notwithstanding the creation of a special Level Meeting on Inegrated Initiatives for Least- working group to intensify efforts to establish the Developed Countries’ Trade Development was Secretariat of the WTO, the General Council was held on 27-28 October in the WTO, with assistance not able in 1997 to agree on the terms and from the Secretariats
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