Second Council conclusions on the 11th World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference - Main contents

"1. The EU remains committed to preserving and strengthening the rules-based multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core. To this end, the EU made a strong effort in the run-up to the Conference to help advance on key issues with the objective of allowing the WTO to develop further and play the part it should in global trade in the 21st century. The Council regrets that it was not possible to achieve an ambitious but realistic and balanced package for the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference.

• 2. 

  Given the challenges that the WTO is currently facing, the Council welcomes the support for multilateralism and the central role of the WTO expressed in the Buenos Aires Declaration made at the opening ceremony of the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference, as well as in the Joint Ministerial Statement by 44 developing and developed WTO members on 11 December 2017. The EU will continue to explore ways to strengthen the WTO, including its negotiating, monitoring and deliberative functions, as well as the effective operation of the dispute settlement mechanism. In this regard, the Council considers that all vacancies on the Appellate Body should be filled without delay.

• 3. 

  The Council believes that work needs to continue on issues of interest to WTO members. The EU has made proposals for reasonable and balanced outcomes at the Ministerial Conference on domestic support in agriculture and public stockholdings for food security purposes. The EU was also leading efforts towards a good substantive outcome on fisheries subsidies and domestic regulation in services, and regrets that progress on these issues has not been possible. In this context, the Council endorses the Ministerial Decisions presented to the Conference.

• 4. 

  The Council also remains strongly committed to advancing in the WTO on other issues, such as e-commerce and SMEs, which are key for global trade. The Council welcomes the Joint Statement on Electronic Commerce, which the EU has actively supported. The Council also welcomes the Joint Ministerial Statements on the establishment of a WTO informal work programme for MSMEs (micro, small and medium sized enterprises), on investment facilitation for development, and on services domestic regulation. The EU will continue to promote further work in the WTO on investment facilitation, as well as trade and women's economic empowerment, MSMEs, export restrictions in agriculture and horizontal subsidies. In this context, the Council approved the draft Ministerial Declaration."

Visit the meeting page Download as pdf