As a responsible WTO member, China wants, along with other members, including those in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), to facilitate the Doha Round so it can be completed by the end of 2006, gaining positive and balanced results to build an open, fair, proper and non-discriminatory multilateral trading system, Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai said Friday in Ho Chi Minh City.

The Chinese Minister made the remark at the two-day Meeting of APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade wrapping up on Friday in southern Ho Chi Minh City of Vietnam.

In the Doha Round, agriculture is of great importance, Bo said, stating that the negotiations could not succeed if the current global farm product trade status did not change. The United States and Europe should keep on trying to substantially slash agriculture subsidies and tariffs, making active contributions to the success of the Doha Round.

Only by doing that, can the impasse in agriculture negotiations be broken, and talks on non-agricultural products and services be successful, Bo said.

He added that all sides should also be active in practically considering lists of products eligible for special and favored treatment, and ensuring food security and livelihood and rural development of developing members of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

In non-agricultural product negotiations, the reduction formula should be prioritized to create conditions for closely related negotiations to produce results, he stated.

In the trade of services, requirements of developed members towards developing ones should be in line with their development level with regard to their short-term trade liberalization level, and with their surveillance and management capacity relating to market opening-up, Bo said.

The Chinese minister stressed that the Doha Round is the development negotiation. How the development issue is resolved measures the success of the Doha Round. Giving the flexibility to developed members is for them to realize their development goals, which is beneficial to the development of the world economy.

He said WTO members should practically realize commitments to least developed members made in the Hong Kong Meeting, and observe special and differential treatment interested by developed members, making developing countries be able to fully participate in the multilateral trading system, and benefit from it substantially.

Bo said China supports the APEC approval for an action plan to carry out the Busan Roadmap, which should combine characteristics of APEC itself with its advantages, ensuring the implementation of the six roads stipulated in the Busan Roadmap towards the Bogor goals in different angles. It should also ensure the targets of continuing to solve traditional and non-traditional trade obstacles, including tariff and non-tariff ones.

He urged the APEC members to take into consideration the different development levels of developed and developing countries to practically achieve the objective of trade and investment liberalization and facilitation in the APEC region by 2010 (for developed economies) and 2020 (for developing ones).

The Chinese minister stated that the construction of free trade agreements has speeded up bilateral, regional and global trade and investment liberalization, effectively complementing the WTO's free multilateral trading system.

Source: Xinhua