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18 December 2003
The Minister for International Trade and Investment (Mr Mike O'Brien)
At the fifth World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial Conference in Cancun (10-14 September 2003), WTO Members agreed to discuss issues further on the 15 December in Geneva.
Since Cancun, all WTO members have reiterated their commitment to a successful conclusion to the Doha Development Agenda but it has not been possible for WTO members to bridge their differences. At the meeting in Geneva on 15 December officials from WTO Members agreed to further negotiations in the new year to discuss how to proceed with the Doha Development Agenda.
This Government
remains fully committed to securing a successful conclusion to the Doha Development
Agenda. We will continue to work with our EU partners, the European Commission,
and others, taking particular account of the views of developing countries.
We are committed to ensuring free and fair trade rules which provide developing
countries with the opportunity to trade themselves out of poverty and deliver
on our commitments to reduce global poverty and remove trade distortions.