Rådsmøde nr. 3440 (udenrigsanliggender – handel (i margen af WTO-ministerkonference)) den 15. december 2015

Europaudvalget 2015-16
Rådsmøde 3440 - udenrigsanliggender
Offentligt

Council of the

European Union

15315/15

(OR. en)

PRESSE 83

PR CO 75

OUTCOME OF THE COUNCIL MEETING

3440th Council meeting

Foreign Affairs

Trade issues

Brussels, 15, 16, 17 and 18 December 2015

President

Romain Schneider

Minister for Social Security, Minister for Development

Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs and Minister for

Sport

PRESS

Rue de la Loi 175 B – 1048 BRUSSELS Tel.: +32 (0)2 281 6319 / 6319 Fax: +32 (0)2 281 8026

[email protected] http://www.consilium.europa.eu/press

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Rådsmøde nr. 3440 (udenrigsanliggender – handel (i margen af WTO-ministerkonference)) den 15. december 2015 - Bilag 1336840:

15, 16, 17 and 18 December 2015

CONTENTS

ITEMS DEBATED

10th WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE.................................... 3

–

First set of conclusions ............................................................................................................................................ 3

Second set of conclusions ........................................................................................................................................ 5

OTHER BUSINESS ............................................................................................................................ 6

–

Crisis in the European steel industry ....................................................................................................................... 6

OTHER ITEMS APPROVED

TRADE POLICY

–

EU-Canada trade negotiations ................................................................................................................................. 7

DECISION TAKEN BY WRITTEN PROCEDURE

–

Western Balkans - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Trade measures ............................................................................... 7



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.

15315/15

Rådsmøde nr. 3440 (udenrigsanliggender – handel (i margen af WTO-ministerkonference)) den 15. december 2015 - Bilag 1336840:

15, 16, 17 and 18 December 2015

ITEMS DEBATED

10th WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE

–

First set of conclusions

Meeting on 15 December 2015 at the opening of the WTO's 10th ministerial conference, the

Council adopted the following conclusions:

"1.

In line with the EU's new trade and investment policy, the Council reiterates that the EU

remains fully committed to a strong, rules-based multilateral trading system and supports the

further strengthening of the multilateral system, including dispute settlement as one of its

central pillars, on the basis of a robust and effective WTO that responds to current and future

global trade challenges, and which better reflects the capacities of other WTO members to

contribute to the system. The EU is committed to exploring ways to make the negotiating arm

of the multilateral trading system work better in the future.

A successful WTO Ministerial Conference (MC10) in Nairobi with concrete, balanced and

meaningful outcomes and an agreement to continue negotiations on remaining issues of the

Doha Development Agenda (DDA) and to consider the addition of new items in the WTO

negotiating agenda will be important to foster trust and confidence in the multilateral trading

system. To this end, the EU calls on all WTO members to concentrate on those issues that are

realistically achievable in Nairobi.

Following the positive achievements of the 9th WTO Ministerial Conference in 2013 and the

ratification by the EU of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), the EU now expects

other WTO partners which have not yet done so to fulfil all the required procedural steps

without delay, so that companies, in particular in developing countries, can experience the

tangible benefits of the TFA as soon as possible.

The Council recalls that the EU had been leading efforts aimed at preparing a comprehensive

outcome on key elements of the Doha Development Agenda in time for MC10. Unfortunately

this could not be achieved. In this context, the Council welcomes the EU efforts towards a

balanced and comprehensive outcome on all forms of export support in agriculture (export

subsidies, export credits, agriculture exporting State Trading Enterprises and food aid) as a

response to the long-standing demands and to the benefit of many countries, notably

developing and least-developed countries.

The EU remains committed to a positive outcome on development and transparency in the

WTO. The Council highlights the progress achieved on the development aspects, ahead of the

MC10, in particular the Decision by the TRIPS Council on 6 November 2015 regarding the

extension until at least 1 January 2033 of the transitional period concerning certain obligations

related to pharmaceutical products for LDCs, the submission by the EU regarding the LDC

Services waiver on 18 November, and a possible solution on preferential rules of origin for

LDCs, which would provide for a meaningful contribution to the development package for the

Conference.

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Rådsmøde nr. 3440 (udenrigsanliggender – handel (i margen af WTO-ministerkonference)) den 15. december 2015 - Bilag 1336840:

15, 16, 17 and 18 December 2015

The EU warmly welcomes the accession of Liberia and Afghanistan to the WTO and recalls

its commitment to support the accession of LDCs to the WTO in accordance with the relevant

WTO guidelines.

The EU looks forward to the conclusion of the negotiations on the revised Information

Technology Agreement (ITA), and to further progress on the list of products under the

Environmental Goods Agreement (EGA), given the expected contribution of these agreements

to stronger global trade and to more growth and jobs in the EU and beyond, and as building

blocks for future multilateral agreements.

The Council supports the Commission in its efforts in order to make the Conference a

success. It will assess the progress made with a view to reaching a balanced outcome in line

with the conditions set out above. To this end, the Council looks forward to the Commission's

proposals for EU negotiating positions on draft texts discussed within the WTO. It also looks

forward to the submission by the Commission of the WTO negotiated texts for Council

approval on behalf of the EU before their final adoption by the WTO bodies."

15315/15

Rådsmøde nr. 3440 (udenrigsanliggender – handel (i margen af WTO-ministerkonference)) den 15. december 2015 - Bilag 1336840:

15, 16, 17 and 18 December 2015

–

Second set of conclusions

Meeting on 19 December 2015, the Council adopted the following conclusions:

"1.

The Council was informed by the Commission of latest developments in the 10th WTO

Ministerial Conference. It shared the Commission's assessment of the overall package and

welcomed the conclusion of the negotiations on the revised Information Technology

Agreement.

In the absence of final texts, the Council agreed that the EU's position joining the consensus

in the Ministerial meeting would be presented to the WTO and reflected in the written

conclusions of the Conference, on the understanding that the EU will follow up the results of

the Ministerial Meeting in accordance with its internal procedures and without prejudice to

the division of competencies between the EU and its Member States."

WTO webpage on the outcome of the 10th ministerial conference

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Rådsmøde nr. 3440 (udenrigsanliggender – handel (i margen af WTO-ministerkonference)) den 15. december 2015 - Bilag 1336840:

15, 16, 17 and 18 December 2015

OTHER BUSINESS

–

Crisis in the European steel industry

The Council discussed challenges facing the European steel industry stemming from a fall in world

demand.

15315/15

Rådsmøde nr. 3440 (udenrigsanliggender – handel (i margen af WTO-ministerkonference)) den 15. december 2015 - Bilag 1336840:

15, 16, 17 and 18 December 2015

OTHER ITEMS APPROVED

TRADE POLICY

EU-Canada trade negotiations

The Council decided to declassify the directives given to the Commission to negotiate a

comprehensive economic and trade agreement with Canada.

The 2009 negotiating directives, as well as a 2011 modification to allow for talks on investment

protection, were made public on 15 December 2015, the same day as the decision.

The draft agreement was finalised at an EU-Canada summit in September 2014. Legal scrubbing

and translation are underway, with a view to signature, ratification and conclusion.

The agreement will remove over 99% of import tariffs in both Canada and the EU. It will create

sizeable new market access opportunities in services and investment. It includes provisions on

government procurement, investment protection, intellectual property rights, sanitary and

phytosanitary measures, geographical indications, sustainable development, regulatory cooperation,

mutual recognition, trade facilitation, cooperation on raw materials, dispute settlement and technical

barriers to trade, amongst others.

The decision was taken by common accord.

DECISION TAKEN BY WRITTEN PROCEDURE

Western Balkans - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Trade measures

On 16 December 2015, the Council adopted a regulation amending regulation 1215/2009 on

exceptional trade measures for the Western Balkans and suspending its application with regard to

Bosnia and Herzegovina (PE-CONS

67/1/15 REV 1).

Adoption of the text follows an agreement with the European Parliament, which approved it at first

reading on 16 December 2015.

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