The deputy prime minister and minister of economic affairs of the Netherlands, Laurens Jan Brinkhorst, said in Hong Kong Friday that the European Union (EU) is willing to go even further in this round of negotiations on market access.
Addressing the plenary session of the Sixth WTO Ministerial Conference, which opened here Tuesday, Brinkhorst said market access is the key to a successful negotiation round in particular for developing countries.
He said, however, there has to be both balance and ambition on the part of all players on all issues.
"Deciding on a specific development package for LDCs ties in nicely with another important issue mentioned by many Ministers: flexibility to be able to get a result that will last for the next 15 to 20 years," Brinkhorst said.
For this reason, he said, "We will have to take into account both prospects for the future as well as developments we cannot foresee."
The ever increasing speed of change in the world demands both flexibility and adaptability of the system, he noted.
He said he believed that matching ambition, balance and flexibility may require setting out a further working program that goes beyond the outcome of the Doha Development Agenda (DDA).
Brinkhorst expected good results for this week to be the following three points: real steps towards effective market access on agriculture, industrial products and services; free market access for all products for all LDCs now; and full modalities before the summer of 2006.
The week-long Sixth WTO Ministerial Conference, which is being attended by delegates from the WTO's 150 members, aims to advance the deadlocked Doha Round trade negotiations. Ministerial conference is the organization's highest decision-making body.