WTO approves membership talks with Iraq, Afghanistan
14/12/2004 14:55
The World Trade Organization (WTO) has approved requests by Iraq and
Afghanistan to begin membership negotiations, but Iran's bid for such talks was
again blocked by the United States.
The WTO General Council on Monday agreed
by consensus to accept the applications of Iraq and Afghanistan for entry
talks.
"The General Council has agreed to gather a working group to study
Iraq's application," a trade official said, adding that it had taken the same
step for Afghanistan.
Iraq was granted observer status at the WTO in
February, a first step to gaining membership, giving it the right to attend
meetings and hold some talks with WTO member countries.
Iraqi Trade Minister
Mohammed Mustafa al-Jibouri hailed the move. "We believe that these measures and
other positive economic initiatives on the part of the international community
will help bring stability and security to my country which had suffered a lot
and still is," he told the General Council meeting.
Afghanistan's envoy to
the United Nations in Geneva, Assad Omar, said that his country's accession
would contribute "to regional prosperity and global security."
Iraq and
Afghanistan will face several years of negotiations with other trading nations
to adapt their laws and trade flows to global trade rules before they can be
formally admitted to the trade body.
While the door to the WTO is open for
Kabul and Baghdad, Iran's bid for observer status in the global trade body was
again rebuffed by the United States.
Iran's request was first made in 1996,
and its accession has been on the council's agenda about 20 times since early
2001. But the US, which accuses Iran of wanting to develop nuclear weapons, has
repeatedly rejected Iran's bid. The result has prompted some countries to
criticize the US of exercising double standard.
"We have serious concern
about the way the item is being treated ... We have difficulties in
understanding why this application is being dealt with in a different way than
others," China's WTO envoy Sun Zhenyu told the council.
The EU Commission
spokesman in Geneva, Fabian Delcros, also expressed disappointment with the US
stance. "We really don't see the point. The United States was completely
isolated in there," Delcros said. "Accession negotiations are not a political
matter and the Iranians have every right to be treated the same way as the
others."
Xinhua
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