Statement by Ambassador Shin-Yuan LAI of the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu on behalf of the Group of Recently Acceded Members (RAMs)
at Meeting of the General Council
Friday, 14 March 2014

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I am speaking on behalf of the Group of Recently Acceded Members (the RAMs Group).

I would first like to bid farewell to those Ambassadors who are now departing Geneva and to welcome those that have arrived recently. I wish them success in all their new endeavours.

Secondly, the Group would like to thank the Director General and all the Chairs of the negotiating groups for their comprehensive assessment reports on the recent consultations on the Post-Bali work programme. We are pleased to hear the momentum is gearing up for the implementation of the Bali Decisions, and for the preparation of the Post-Bali work programme as well. And, we are pleased to note that the principles of “transparency” and “inclusiveness” are to be respected in the process. We also understand that in order to complete the work programme by the end of this year, our primary tasks now are to keep up the momentum, to continue the dialogue - bearing in mind the parameters that the Director General provided - and to find ways of acting collectively.

At the same time, the RAMs Group would like to share with you a few thoughts on the Post-Bali work from our particular perspective:

1. This multilateral trading system is always the principal forum for promoting global trade. We therefore urge Members to complete the Doha Development Agenda and all its mandates, which include reaching a comprehensive final package. We should also be flexible to look at all possible approaches that can help to achieve completion of the Round.

2. The development dimension is the central pillar of the Post-Bali work programme, and the needs and interests of developing country Members should be at its heart as well. In view of the extensive commitments made by the RAMs Members at the time of their accessions, the special flexibility needs of the RAMs, as instructed in Paragraph 58 of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration, have to be given due consideration.

3. The three core issues- Agriculture, NAMA and Services – are to be treated inter-connectedly. In other words, these three pillars are integral parts of the DDA package, and therefore, no single issue may be treated independently from the other two. We also underscore the need to maintain a balance between the level of ambition of each of these three pillars as integral parts of the results of the DDA negotiations. And, the 2008 modalities, Rev. 4, should be the basis for the future negotiations on Agriculture and NAMA.

4. As clearly stated in Paragraph 1.11 of the Bali Ministerial Declaration, Ministers have instructed us to develop the work programme on the remaining DDA issues. We should therefore devote our full commitment and entire efforts to the completion of this decade-long Round by reaching consensus on the remaining DDA issues. The clock is ticking, and we should not deviate from the course that our Ministers have set.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for giving me the floor.