Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-12-11-Speech-2-043"
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"en.20011211.3.2-043"2
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"Mr President, Commissioners, the European Union has made a considerable effort in the field of access to medicines. It has managed to bring initially very diverse opinions closer together and has contributed greatly to the final text which was met by approval by all parties.
Indeed, the statement about TRIPS and public health has given the developing countries the desired assurance that the TRIPS Agreement is indeed offering flexibility, even without amending that Agreement. Even NGOs have received the Agreement favourably.
As for further legislation, an important step has been made in order to develop the environmental dimension of world trade. The European Union managed to ensure that negotiations on the environment start without delay, and that the link between the WTO rules and the trade rules of the multi-lateral environment agreements which form part of them becomes more transparent. This is a very important breakthrough.
Furthermore, the negotiation agenda offers scope for expanding the environmental themes during the Fifth Ministerial Conference. However, as is always the case in negotiations, not everything went according to plan, of course. For example, it appeared impossible, despite efforts, to alter the developing countries’ resistance to the introduction of basic labour standards in the trade negotiations. It appeared impossible to make a reference in the ministerial statement to the development of a permanent forum between the ILO and other international organisations, including the WTO. However, the European Union did manage to have the phrase scrapped which would have restricted the dialogue about basic labour standards to the ILO, and that enables us to continue our quest for a permanent forum. Moreover, at the suggestion of the presidency, a statement was added in the shape of this phrase to the conclusions of the General Affairs Council of 14 November in Doha, Qatar, in which the Council and the Commission confirm this objective.
The principle of future negotiations was also laid down for the so-called Singapore themes which form part of the priorities of European industry and which concern investments, competition, trade facilitation and transparency regarding government contracts. These will be initiated following the Fifth Ministerial Conference on the basis of explicit consensus with regard to its modalities.
There is also reason for satisfaction in the field of agriculture. The negotiations will aim to further improve market access and dismantle the different types of trade-distorting aid.
In addition to the pure trade aspects, serious consideration will also be given to non-trade concerns. Some of you have followed the export subsidies saga from very close range. You know the outcome, but let me assure you that it was nevertheless a difficult journey, and that for a long time it looked like the Commissioners would not succeed in reaching a sound agreement. But they did anyway, and they deserve all our congratulations on that score."@en1
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