TWN Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Oct26/06)
8 October 2026
Third World Network

WTO: Deep divisions at GC meeting over reform pace, Doha issues
Published in SUNS #10528 dated 7 October 2026

Geneva, 6 Oct (D. Ravi Kanth) -- China has seemingly rejected the notion of "non-market economy, over-capacity, or over-concentration" as a basis for rule-making within the "level playing field" (LPF) issues track of the discussions on reform of the World Trade Organization at the WTO's General Council (GC) meeting on 5 October, said people familiar with the development.

In line with the tough stand it adopted at the G20 trade ministers' meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States last week, China stated its position during a discussion on the WTO reform track regarding LPF issues, said people familiar with the development.

The United States apparently said that there is no value in "continually having a high-level abstract discussion."

The US trade envoy, Ambassador Joseph Barloon, noted that G20 ministers in Milwaukee discussed reform of Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) treatment and structural excess capacity, but he failed to inform that there was no agreement on these two issues, said people familiar with the discussions.

Attempts to restrict members to two-minute and three-minute time limits in highlighting their serious concerns and grievances on WTO reform and other issues in the Doha negotiating areas seemingly failed at the GC meeting, resulting in a clash of views among members, said people familiar with the development.

At the two-day GC meeting that began on 5 October, the chair, Ambassador Clare Kelly of New Zealand, stated in the annotated agenda that "no lengthy discussion is expected," as members had met to discuss WTO reform at an informal Heads of Delegation meeting on 30 September.

However, the GC chair has not seemingly issued or circulated the full written reports of the oral comments made by the facilitators of the four controversial reform tracks - foundational issues, decision-making, "level playing field" issues, and development - prior to the GC meeting, said a trade envoy who preferred not to be quoted.

The time limit of two minutes for the statements of individual delegations and three minutes for coordinators of different coalitions seemed neither here nor there for them to fully express their views on WTO reform, the trade envoy said.

The chair did not repeat her 30 September statement while asking delegations to raise only new points, and said MC15 is the overall timeframe, said another participant who asked not to be quoted.

The chair of the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body (DSB), Ambassador Guilherme de Aguiar Patriota of Brazil, who is overseeing the negotiations on reform of the dispute settlement system (DSS), provided an update on the informal plenaries and a first information session on DSS reform held last week.

It appears that more than 40 delegations asked to take the floor, but halfway through their interventions, the GC chair apparently reminded them of the time limits and said they could "work out for yourself how long this item is going to take."

Several developing and least-developed countries weighed in during the discussions on DSS reform to convey their frustration over the WTO's dysfunctional enforcement function, while importance is being given to other controversial reforms that they did not seek, said several people who asked not to be quoted.

In fact, serious credibility and integrity issues were raised about WTO reforms which did not seem to address their core trade concerns, said people who asked not to be quoted.

Bangladesh, a least-developed country about to graduate, categorically said the WTO reform started from the premise that the WTO was "not delivering," while posing the question: "not delivering for whom?"

Bangladesh also questioned the excessive importance being attached to digitally-delivered services, which has been campaigned by the WTO Director-General, Ms Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, during the meetings at the recent WTO's Public Forum, suggesting that growth paths are diverging and low-income countries' share of digitally deliverable services is falling.

Colombia said it fully agrees with Bangladesh, arguing that members lack a common diagnosis, said people familiar with the development.

More pointedly, Namibia, on behalf of the African Group, asked as to "whose interests the WTO reform should ultimately serve."

Sri Lanka apparently asked which "specific issues" members mean, and whether they are shared or just individual concerns, according to people present at the meeting.

The Philippines said WTO reform requires willingness "to reflect on the failures or perceived failures of the organization," a point that was echoed in equal measure by Brazil, Egypt, Togo, Sierra Leone, Gabon, and the Pacific Group.

PACE & SCHEDULING

Another issue echoed during the GC meeting concerned the pace and scheduling of the WTO reform meetings, which are starting with a meeting on the reform track on decision-making on 8 October.

The Gambia, on behalf of the LDC group, maintained that reform "should not be driven by deadlines that members have not agreed to."

Highlighting the importance of "inclusiveness," India said that inclusiveness "is not simply about keeping the meetings open."

New Delhi added that members need "a realistic opportunity to participate effectively."

Given capacity constraints and limited resources, Tanzania apparently said that with its limited staff it often cannot attend parallel meetings, said people familiar with the discussions.

The same concern was also apparently voiced by the African Group, CARICOM (the Caribbean regional grouping of 23 countries), ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) group, Pacific Group, Indonesia, Nigeria, Cambodia, Rwanda, Zambia, Burkina Faso, Mauritius, and Venezuela, said people familiar with the development.

On the status of the facilitators' papers, several countries cautioned that they "are neither negotiated texts nor agreed descriptions of members' positions," and silence should not be interpreted as agreement," according to people present at the meeting.

Brazil appears to have warned against "presuming that a ministerial mandate exists, that convergence has been established, or that there is a predefined menu of options."

PLURILATERALS

With growing opposition to legitimizing plurilateral negotiations without following the rules set out in the Marrakesh Agreement, the issue figured prominently during the meeting.

Antigua and Barbuda, on behalf of CARICOM, appears to have said pointedly that "attempts to reinterpret consensus are, in fact, attempts to renegotiate the Marrakesh Agreement."

South Africa seemingly emphasized that new tools "must never be weaponized to bypass the multilateral architecture."

In a similar tone, Pakistan is understood to have cautioned against pushing preferred tools "as fait accompli."

The LDC group apparently warned that plurilaterals "should not become a default response when consensus is difficult."

Belize apparently cited Article 34 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), arguing that it is "leery" of critical-mass thresholds.

MFN treatment issues, on which the G20 trade ministers remained divided in the Milwaukee meeting last week, also surfaced during the meeting.

Kenya, for example, apparently said "if access comes to depend on bilateral bargaining, those with least leverage lose first."

Brazil, which has consistently voiced its concern on stymying the MFN principle, appears to have pointed to "growing pressure on existing commitments, particularly tariff bindings and the MFN principle."

GRADUATION

Regarding an issue being pushed hard by the US and several industrialized countries, the LDC group clarified that it has "not proposed LDC graduation as a separate reform work stream."

In the same breath, the African Group said reform "should not become a route to graduation," while South Africa apparently warned against "a disguised path to premature graduation."

The CARICOM group rejected the criteria of GDP per capita as a basis for special and differential treatment.

Lao, a Southeast Asian LDC, said that "graduation should be a reward, not a punishment."

Kenya said that "the real test of this reform is whether a Kenya tea farmer in Kericho can trade on fair terms."

On "level playing field" issues, the divide among the reform proponents and opponents is seemingly becoming inflexible, said a person who asked not to be quoted.

The African Group said the issue of transparency should not "unduly narrow" the track, while emphasizing that agriculture, policy space, and unilateral measures should also be covered.

Brazil is understood to have said that "level playing field cannot be limited to industrial subsidies."

DSS REFORM

Several countries seemingly pressed for accelerated discussions on DSS reform, said people familiar with the development.

Venezuela apparently said that "no reform effort will be complete" without a working system.

Vietnam seems to have highlighted the importance of a robust two-tier dispute settlement system as "an absolute priority."

Turkiye apparently said that rules cannot be strengthened "if confidence in the enforcement of those rules is not restored."

Concurring with the above positions, the African Group, Belize, Egypt, South Africa, and Brazil also drove home the message that DSS reform must be given greater importance than other reforms, said people familiar with the discussions.

The Russian Federation also called for work on DSS reform to proceed in parallel with the discussions on other reforms, said people familiar with the development.

Regarding the views voiced by several countries on reforms, the proponents apparently expressed concern, said people familiar with the development.

Switzerland, which is the coordinator of the "Friends of the System" group that is at the heart of bringing forward the controversial issue of reforms, said that it is "a bit worried about the interventions ... heavily relying on procedural matters."

Singapore, another fierce proponent of reforms, cautioned that it would be "untenable to go to MC15 empty- handed" after "24 months discussing what to discuss."

Singapore also dismissed further efforts to try "to diagnose problems", while the United Kingdom appears to have said that "26.6% of the time available before MC15 has passed."

Norway, a core member of the "Friends of the System" group, apparently said that reform serves "all members" and that there are many problems, not just one.

Canada said that there is "not a lot about the spirit of compromise," while the European Union, Australia, Japan, Korea, Chile, and Hong Kong-China wanted to move to more focused thematic formats, said people familiar with the discussions.

OUTCOME

The GC chair appears to have acknowledged that the concerns about pace and scheduling are "reasonable and persuasive."

Ambassador Kelly said that she remains committed to reviewing the whole WTO calendar with the Secretariat, facilitators, and the chairs.

On the diagnosis of the problems and the controversial nature of the seemingly "top-down" approaches adopted by the facilitators in the reform discussions, the GC chair said the four tracks "weren't plucked out of a hat" but came from the earlier process led by Ambassador Petter Olberg of Norway.

She appears to have urged members to engage with the proposals in detail instead of making "higher-level statements."

Ambassador Kelly said that she noted broad support for new meeting formats in November.

When invited by the GC chair to speak at the end of the discussion, the DG, Ms Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, seemed visibly upset and had wanted to say something, but when offered the floor, the DG chose not to add anything after the chair's response, said people familiar with the discussions.

The GC then took note of the statements and moved to item five of the agenda dealing with the work programme on small economies. +