EU Parliament - Head of EP delegation to WTO satisfied with Hong Kong Outcome

WTO: Barón Crespo satisfied with outcome of Hong Kong meeting" I believe the results of the WTO ministerial conference in Hong Kong, while limited by their great complexity, are only a step, but one which reflects our priorities", said the leader of the European Parliament delegation, Enrique Barón Crespo, following the WTO meeting which finished on 18 December in Hong Kong.

"There is still a long way to go but these agreements keep alive the hope of achieving the EU's fundamental priority objectives", added Mr Barón Crespo, who led the EP delegation to the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO, which took place in parallel to the WTO ministerial meeting. The Parliamentary Conference was organised by the European Parliament and the Interparliamentary Union and attended by over 400 national and European MPs representing 65 countries and delegations from around the world. Its main aim was to increase the transparency of the WTO - which is an intergovernmental body - and show that the WTO would be more accountable if it involved democratically elected legislators in its work. Mr Barón Crespo stressed that the agreement reached at Hong Kong takes account of the EU's objectives: guaranteed access to its market, without customs duties or quotas, for all the least developed countries, as well as the Everything but Arms initiative, which is now renamed Quota Free/Duty Free.

The Hong Kong resolution backs other principles championed by the EU and the Parliamentary Conference, namely the gradual reduction of aid to agriculture, services and non-farm products, the gradual elimination of all export subsidies and other forms of aid for surpluses and the protection of certain sensitive products such as cotton. According to Mr Barón Crespo, the Hong Kong meeting confirmed that "trade is not an end in itself". Moreover, "a successful Doha round is crucial to preserve and strengthen the multilateral trade system so as to ensure the progress and harmonious development of the world economy with a view to eradicating poverty and distributing the fruits of globalisation more fairly".

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• EU Council Conclusions - Hong Kong WTO Special Meeting (19/12/2005)
• EU move on export subsidies takes Doha forward  (18/12/2005)
• Food Aid: EU urges US reform (14/12/2005)
• EU Pushing Ahead the Doha Development Agenda (9/12/2005)
• EU welcomes permanent WTO solution on generic medicines (6/12/2005)
• Doha and Development: some academic perspectives (30/11/2005)
• Speech by EU Commissioner Mandelson - Doha and Development  (30/11/2005)