Vietnam joins WTO negotiations o
Vietnam joins WTO negotiations on fisheries subsidies
Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai, Head of
Vietnam’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations (UN), World Trade Organisation
(WTO) and other international organisations in Geneva, led a delegation to join
WTO negotiations on fisheries subsidies, which was held virtually in February.
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Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai, Head of Vietnam’s Permanent Mission to
the United Nations (UN), World Trade Organisation (WTO) and other
international organisations in Geneva (Photo: VNA) |
The Vietnamese delegation actively
participated in the discussions with the aim of reaching consensus and promoting
negotiations in order to early achieve satisfactory solutions for all parties,
towards realising the sustainable development goal (SDG) 14.6 of the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development of the UN.
At a meeting of heads of delegation to the WTO, Chair of the WTO
negotiating group, Ambassador Santiago Wills of Colombia, briefed the
participants on the work that has been done since January 2021.
Wills reiterated that the WTO members should begin to express their views on
an acceptable outcome that can lead the successful conclusion of negotiations,
aiming to protect aquatic resources worldwide.
Many statements delivered at the meeting noted the differences of views on the
three issues discussed in the latest negotiation round, while proposing to use
many different forms of negotiation to find solutions to narrowing the
differences.
A number of members welcomed the call of new WTO Director-General Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala on February 15 to introduce the WTO’s new rules on fisheries
subsidies as soon as possible in 2021.
The next round of negotiations on fisheries subsidies will start on March 15.
WTO members can also conduct consultations before the next round of
negotiations.
The WTO’s 11th Ministerial Conference (MC11) and SDG 14.6 give negotiators the
task of securing an agreement on eliminating subsidies for illegal, unreported
and unregulated (IUU) fishing and to prohibit certain forms of fisheries
subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing by the end of 2020.
WTO members committed to build on their 2020 progress and reach a resolution in
2021.
SDG 14.6, part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted by all
United Nations member states, including Vietnam, in 2015, affirms the WTO's role
in the global fisheries subsidies agenda.
It targets to “by 2020, prohibit certain forms of fisheries subsidies which
contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, and eliminate subsidies that
contribute to IUU fishing, and refrain from introducing new such subsidies,
recognising that appropriate and effective special and differential treatment
for developing and least developed countries should be an integral part of the
WTO fisheries subsidies negotiation.”/.
VNA