2028
WTO Meet may be in Riyadh
Ø Saudi
Arabia offered to host the 15th WTO Ministerial Conference in Riyadh in 2028
1.
First General Council meeting held after MC14
The World Trade Organization General Council met to discuss follow-up actions
after MC14 in Cameroon.
2.
New General Council Chair took charge
Ambassador Clare Kelly highlighted strong convergence achieved at MC14 on
e-commerce and WTO reform issues.
3.
Members want to preserve MC14 progress
Most WTO members expressed interest in continuing negotiations in Geneva
without restarting discussions or losing momentum.
4.
Türkiye joined consensus on e-commerce moratorium
Türkiye announced it would not block consensus on temporarily extending the
moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions.
5.
E-commerce moratorium discussions advanced further
The move by Türkiye narrowed gaps among members on maintaining duty-free
treatment for digital trade.
6.
WTO reform talks to continue
Ambassador Kelly said consultations on WTO reform and dispute settlement reform
would continue under the Dispute Settlement Body framework.
7.
Focus areas beyond e-commerce identified
Members were encouraged to continue discussions on:
o
TRIPS non-violation complaints moratorium
o
Technology transfer for least developed countries
o
Remittance costs
o
Agriculture
o
Fisheries subsidies
o
Investment facilitation
8.
Director-General praised MC14 outcomes
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala urged members to finalize pending work in Geneva and
maintain the cooperative spirit shown in Yaoundé.
9.
Three formal WTO decisions adopted at MC14
Members adopted decisions on:
o
Better integration of small economies
o
Improved implementation of SPS and TBT special
treatment provisions
o
Continued fisheries subsidies negotiations
10.
United States led digital trade initiative
The United States introduced a joint statement with 19 members committing to
continue not imposing customs duties on electronic transmissions from 8 May
2026.
11.
Plurilateral e-commerce agreement advanced
More than 60 WTO members agreed on a pathway to operationalize the Agreement on
Electronic Commerce through interim arrangements while seeking future
incorporation into WTO rules.
12.
Republic of Korea raised concerns on protectionism
Republic of Korea submitted a statement emphasizing the need to preserve open
and predictable trade and avoid actions undermining trade liberalization.
13.
Saudi Arabia proposed to host MC15
Saudi Arabia offered to host the 15th WTO Ministerial Conference in Riyadh in
2028.
14.
Outgoing Chair urged members to sustain momentum
Ambassador Saqer Abdullah Almoqbel said members were close to agreement on many
issues and should push for final outcomes in Geneva.
15.
Next WTO General Council meeting scheduled
The next meeting of the WTO General Council will take place on 14–15 July 2026.
At
the first meeting of the General Council since the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14),
the newly elected Chairperson, Ambassador Clare Kelly (New Zealand), reported on
her consultations with members on how to continue discussions in Geneva to build
upon the high level of convergence on several areas of work at MC14 held in Yaoundé,
Cameroon. Members also took note of Türkiye's announcement that it was joining the
growing convergence to extend the e-commerce moratorium, with many welcoming the
additional progress in narrowing gaps in the discussions.
Citing
the summary of MC14 Chairperson Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, Cameroon's Minister
of Trade, Ambassador Kelly recalled that members came close to endorsing texts on
the E-Commerce Work Programme and moratorium and on WTO reform. Her consultations
indicated that many members valued the degree of convergence in these two areas,
she said.
"This
degree of convergence represents a considerable investment in persuasion and pragmatism
by very many members. These members, whom I would judge to be the majority, do not
want this effort to go to waste and are keen to keep working," she said.
Ambassador
Kelly said she will undertake consultations with members on the issues of e-commerce
and WTO reform with the intention of reporting to the General Council in July, or
sooner if possible, on her views on the way forward.
Türkiye
at the meeting said it will not stand in the way of consensus on a temporary extension
of the e-commerce moratorium as proposed in the annex to the MC14 Chairperson's
Summary.
Ambassador
Kelly further noted that the draft declaration and work plan on WTO reform, likewise
annexed to the MC14 Chairperson's Summary, acknowledges that consultations on dispute
settlement reform under the auspices of the Dispute Settlement Body should continue
following MC14.
Ambassador
Kelly also recalled the other issues tackled in Yaoundé and suggested the next steps
for these topics, namely the moratorium on non-violation complaints under the Agreement
on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), the least developed
countries-specific package including the G90 Agreement-specific proposals on Article
66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement regarding transfer of technology, cost of remittances,
and emerging agricultural trade issues: "As General Council Chair, I would
like to reiterate the MC14 Chairperson's encouragement to members to continue discussions
amongst themselves and relevant WTO bodies with a view to addressing these important
issues."
"I
believe the same applies to other matters that ministers discussed in ministerial
sessions namely agriculture, fisheries subsidies and investment facilitation for
development."
Summing
up members' responses at the GC meeting to the proposed way forward, the GC Chair
furthermore said: "There seems to be a shared recognition of the importance
of continuing our efforts toward concluding this work without either starting over,
backtracking, losing momentum or getting lost in process, all while preserving the
careful balance reflected in the convergence achieved in Yaoundé."
Director-General
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala likewise lauded the progress made at MC14 and called on members
to finish the work in Geneva.
Members
formally adopted three decisions in Yaoundé covering improving the integration of
small economies into the multilateral trading system; enhancing the precise, effective
and operational implementation of special and differential treatment provisions
in the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) and Technical Barriers
to Trade (TBT) Agreement; and continuing to engage in negotiations on fisheries
subsidies.
"The
task before us now, as the MC14 Chairperson so clearly articulated, is how to follow
up with our work and not let our ministers, leaders and other stakeholders down,"
DG Okonjo-Iweala said.
"I
want to thank members for their patience and willingness not to backtrack from their
positions in Yaoundé and those who have yet to join consensus on their willingness
to keep communication channels open," she said.
"On
reform, let me strongly support the process outlined by the GC Chair. Progress on
reform is vital. It is members that see the challenges to the multilateral trading
system, and only members can push to reform and confront those challenges,"
she added.
The
United States, as part of its intervention on the follow-up to MC14, introduced
a Joint Statement on the Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic
Transmissions from 19 members. Beginning on 8 May 2026, the co-sponsors of the communication
will continue to not impose customs duties on electronic transmissions among themselves.
Members
at the meeting also took note of the Agreement on Electronic Commerce, a plurilateral
initiative. Over 60 members announced at MC14 that they had adopted a pathway to
bring into force the Agreement through interim arrangements while continuing to
work towards its incorporation into the WTO legal framework of rules.
Members
also considered a statement from the Republic of Korea on "Preserving the Spirit
of Open and Predictable Trade: Collective Restraint Against Actions Undermining
Trade Liberalization" and a communication from several members on agricultural
trade issues.
15th Ministerial
Conference
The
GC Chair noted that MC14 ministers agreed to request the General Council to hold
consultations on the date and venue of MC15. She said she will be continuing to
hold consultations based on the offer by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to host MC15
in Riyadh in 2028.
Outgoing Chair
The
outgoing GC Chair, Ambassador Saqer Abdullah Almoqbel of Saudi Arabia, said it was
an honour to serve in the role. He added: "Post-MC14, we must not lose the
momentum, given how close we are on many files. We must now build on the process
from Yaoundé and provide a final push here in Geneva."
Next meeting
The
next General Council meeting is scheduled for 14-15 July.