Voorbereiding Raad achtste ministeriële conferentie Wereldhandelsorganisatie (en)
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
PROVISIONAL VERSION
PRESSE 498 PR CO 80
PRESS RELEASE
3136th Council meeting Foreign Affairs Trade
Geneva, 14 December 2011
Director, Trade Policy Department, Ministry of Economy of Poland
PROVISIONAL VERSION
14.XII.2011
Main results of the Council
The Council met in Geneva to prepare the 8th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organisation on 15-17 December.
The Council approved the accession of Russia and Samoa to the WTO. The decision will be taken at the WTO ministerial conference.
The Council also gave the go-ahead to the Commission to start bilateral negotiations with Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia, with a view to establishing "deep and comprehensive" free trade areas.
Other decisions taken by the Council include EU support for the granting of a waiver enabling WTO members to give preferential treatment to services and service suppliers of least-developed countries.
PROVISIONAL VERSION
CONTTS1
14.XII.2011
PARTICIPANTS................................................................................................................................4
ITEMS DEBATED
WTO MINISTERIAL CONFERCE...............................................................................................6
OTHER ITEMS APPROVED
TRADE POLICY
— Accession of Samoa to the WTO.............................................................................................................................7
— Accession of Russia to the WTO.............................................................................................................................7
— Free trade agreements with Southern Mediterranean countries...............................................................................8
— Preferential treatment for least-developed countries................................................................................................8
— Anti-dumping - Steel pipes and tubes - China.........................................................................................................8
Where declarations, conclusions or resolutions have been formally adopted by the Council, this is indicated in the heading for the item concerned and the text is placed between quotation marks. Documents for which references are given in the text are available on the Council's Internet site (http://www.consilium.europa.eu)
Acts adopted with statements for the Council minutes which may be released to the public are indicated by an asterisk; these statements are available on the Council's Internet site or may be obtained from the Press Office
PROVISIONAL VERSION
14.XII.2011
PARTICIPANTS
Belgium:
Mr Francois ROUX Bulgaria:
Mr Gancho GANEV
Czech Republic:
Mr Martin TLAPA
Denmark:
Ms Pia OLS DYHR Germany:
Mr Jochen HOMANN
Estonia:
Mr Vaino REINART
Ireland:
Mr Gerard CORR Greece:
Mr Constantine PAPADOPOULOS Spain:
Mr Alfredo BONET BAIGET France:
Mr Pierre LELLOUCHE
Italy:
Mr Amedeo TETI
Cyprus:
Ms Aigli PANTELAKI
Latvia:
Mr Edgars RTNKËVICS Lithuania:
Mr Egidijus MEILÜNAS
Luxembourg:
Mr Jean FEYDER
Hungary:
Mr Istvan MAJOR
Malta:
Mr Joseph RAPA
Netherlands:
Mr Simon SMITS
Austria:
Mr Reinhold MITTERLEHNER Poland:
Mr Mieczyslaw NOGAJ
Permanent Representative
Permanent Representative of the Republic of Bulgaria to the UN and the Other International Organizations in Geneva
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade
Minister for Trade and Investment
State Secretary, Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology
Undersecretary of Economic and Development Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Permanent Representative
Secretary General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
State Secretary for Foreign Trade
Minister of State with responsibility for Foreign Trade, attached to the Minister for Economic Affairs, Finance and Industry
Director General for Trade Policy of the Italian Ministry of Economic Development
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Head of delegation
Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs
Permanent Representative
Permanent Representation
Director General, Ministry of Finance, the Economy and Investment
Deputy Head of delegation, Director-General International Relations, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation
Federal Minister of Economy, Family and Youth
Director, Trade Policy Department, Ministry of Economy
PROVISIONAL VERSION
14.XII.2011
Portugal:
Mr Miguel MORAIS LEITAO Romania:
Mr Karoly BORBELY Slovenia:
MrMatjazKOVACIC Slovakia:
Mr Kristian TAKAC Finland:
Mr Esko HAMILO Sweden:
Ms Ewa BJÖRLING
United Kingdom:
Mr Edward DAVEY
Secretary of State for European Affairs
Secretary of State, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Business Environment
Permanent Representative
Vice Minister, Ministry of Economy
Under-Secretary of State for External Economic Relations
Minister for Trade
Minister of State for Trade
The Government of the Acceding State was represented as follows:
Croatia:
Ms Vesna Vukovic Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Permanent
Representative
PROVISIONAL VERSION
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ITEMS DEBATED
WTO MINISTERIAL CONFERCE
The Council held an exchange of views in preparation for the 8th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organisation, to be held at WTO headquarters in Geneva on 15-17 December. It also discussed negotiations on government procurement agreement market access
While no breakthrough is expected in the Doha Development Agenda negotiations during this ministerial conference, the Council reiterated its commitment to an ambitious and comprehensive outcome to the meeting. The Council also emphasised the crucial role of the WTO in the current economic and financial crisis and endorsed its efforts to provide an effective monitoring process to counter protectionism
PROVISIONAL VERSION
14.XII.2011
OTHER ITEMS APPROVED
TRADE POLICY
Accession of Samoa to the WTO
The Council adopted a decision approving, on behalf of the EU, Samoa's accession to the WTO. The decision will be taken by the WTO at its 8th ministerial conference, to be held in Geneva on 15-17 December
Accession of Russia to the WTO
The Council adopted a decision approving, on behalf of the EU, Russia's accession to the WTO. The decision will be taken by the WTO at its 8th ministerial conference, to be held in Geneva on 15-17 December
As part of a broader package, the Council also approved the signing1 of four bilateral agreements with Russia, which are set out in the Protocol of Accession to the WTO:
administration of tariff-rate quotas applying to exports of wood from Russia to the EU;
a compensation mechanism to ensure that imports of parts and components of motor vehicle from the EU to Russia do not decrease as a result of application of the investment regime in the automotive sector;
preservation of commitments on trade in services contained in the current EU-Russia partnership and cooperation agreement;
introduction or increase by Russia of export duties on raw materials
1 The signing is expected to take place on 16 December at the Russian Embassy in Geneva
PROVISIONAL VERSION
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Free trade agreements with Southern Mediterranean countries
The Council authorised the Commission to open bilateral negotiations with Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia, with a view to establishing "deep and comprehensive" free trade areas, as part of the existing Euro-Mediterranean association agreements with those countries
Talks will start pending the outcome of a Commission report assessing the ability of partner countries to negotiate and implement commitments as part of a free trade agreement
Preferential treatment for least-developed countries
The Council adopted a decision approving, on behalf of the EU, the granting by the WTO ministerial conference of a waiver enabling WTO members to give preferential treatment to services and service suppliers of least-developed countries
Anti-dumping - Steel pipes and tubes - China
The Council adopted a regulation imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty and collecting definitively the provisional duty imposed on imports of certain seamless pipes and tubes of stainless steel originating in China ().