 Good afternoon everybody. Welcome to the members of the media here in the room and welcome to our global audience on the live stream and webcast Thank you for joining us today I'm Very honored and proud to present this distinguished panel today to my immediate left is Minister Johan Schneider-Aman who is the Minister for Economic Affairs education and research of the Swiss Federal Council and Also, we are joined today by Director General Roberto Azevedo of the World Trade Organization This press conference has some somewhat of a tradition here in Davos the two gentlemen are coming directly from the informal gathering of ministers and We are very grateful that we they will be sharing their key findings today with us. Thank you Thank you. Mr. Schmidt Ladies and gentlemen, I welcome you to this press conference at the occasion of the two days in formal WTO ministerial gathering With me today is WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo This morning 21 main esters together is Roberto Azevedo met under my met under my German ship for the informal discussion and the upcoming negotiations in the WTO First I would like to give you my assessment of today's meeting and then I pass to Roberto Azevedo We had a good and open discussion this morning. I Want to summarize this discussion in 10 points First 20 years after the organization's establishment We shared an understanding that very important objectives are on the WTO's agenda in 2015 and we expressed our confidence that members will succeed in Meeting these objectives in a timely way Secondly, we reiterated our commitment to implementing all decisions taken at the 9th WTO ministerial conference in Bali Including on public stock holdings for food security purposes as amended in November 2014 the third point We concurred that by July a Detailed work program will have to be defined setting up a Credible and realistic path towards a conclusion of the Doha development round force a Sense of urgency must be instilled to the work in Geneva Intensive efforts will be required in the three main areas of negotiations Namely agriculture non-agricultural market access NAMA and services but also in Other fields the fifth point the development dimension and in particular aspects Relevant to least developed countries will have to remain at the center Six the key issues will need to be identified rapidly and addressed in a transparent and inclusive way We should be aware of each other's interest and constraints Focus on what this doable doable Consider new ways of engaging in order to move ahead more efficiently and be prepared to review long-standing negotiating positions Sevenths we welcome to a process set in motion in Geneva towards reaching these objectives and Concord that this shift in gear has to be sustained by a high level of engagement by all members also in capitals The eighth point some of us also mentioned the importance of delivering concrete outcomes in plurilateral initiatives on a most favored nation basis such as the amendment of the information technology agreement Nines we for the more welcome to decision by members to hold the next WTO ministerial conference for the first time in Africa and thanked Kenya for hosting that conference in December in Nairobi and Last but not least we agreed to remain Engaged in you of making the ministerial conference in Nairobi a success Including by supporting timely ratification of the trade facilitation agreement That's a summary of the two days ministerial meeting Thank You minister and without further ado over to you Well, thank you very much. I would like to start by thanking the Swiss government and in particular Minister Schneider-Aman for holding The meeting that we had today It was a very important one it essentially marks also the 20th anniversary of the WTO and to acknowledge of course the important role that WTO has played over the years We have key milestones coming up And we discussed them today. Of course, the first one is July when we are supposed to conclude a work program for the conclusion of the Doha development agenda and Another very important milestone, of course, is a 10th ministerial conference that is going to be held in Nairobi in December This year. This is our first ever ministerial conference in Africa And the first since our successful meeting in Bali So expectations are naturally high and I told ministers in the meeting that after a very positive end to 2014 We are starting this year with a lot of momentum And I told them that things had already started in Geneva last week I actually started an intensified process of consultations with the aim of agreeing On the work program that we are supposed to conclude by July Our goal is to prepare a very detailed work program We wanted to be as specific as possible So that if we deliver that we should be in a position Then to conclude the negotiations in a short period of time But to do this we need to urgently Engage in a much more substantive detailed and precise manner Specifically in the core issues so agriculture industrial goods and services But not only that we also have to engage on all the other the DDA issues including the development issues and the ones that are A priority for the least developed countries And I and I told ministers that I needed their support their personal support for this kind of discussion I asked them to instruct their ambassadors in Geneva to stop speaking in general terms and to engage on the specifics and I urge them to give their Ambassadors the green light to take risks and to put their cards on the table So this is the only way that we're going to make progress ambassadors need the political will behind them To engage in an open and constructive way And I'm pleased to say that the minister responded very positively to this call What I have seen and heard in Davos and in Geneva in recent days is very encouraging a Spirit of urgency is there, but also a spirit of realism It is beginning to sink in All ministers realized that we are again at a critical juncture and that we have to deliver results if the Multilateral system is to prosper and I have heard things in recent days that I have not heard in many years Ministers now fully understand that we can't continue to dust off tired positions on the issues of Agriculture industrial goods and services We have to change the nature of our conversations Now we will need to be creative and open-minded. That's for sure We need to understand that it is not enough to say what you want You also have to say What you are ready to give So this is crucial For us to move forward. It is a fundamental year for the WTO We have the opportunity to deliver Really some substantive outcomes, which will bring real Economic benefits for everyone and for a global economy that is really in need of good good news So there is a lot of work ahead But I think that we took an important step forward today. Thank you Thank you very much for sharing the insights from the informal gathering For the sake of our online audience if there are questions, please state your name and organization We have a microphone at the back. There's a gentleman to the left Hi, I'm Daniel Rietner from Brazil's Valor economic. Oh, my questions is for both as a veteran minister first When you talk about work program, does that involve drafts as well? And when should the drafts be delivered? Secondly, I think it would be almost impossible to conclude the Doha round without touching agricultural subsidies As far as agriculture is concerned, how ambitious Do ministers seem to be? Thank you well The mandate doesn't specify what shape or form the work program would have so I suppose that Members will decide as we get close to July what kind of work program they are ready to deliver by that time We set to ourselves a goal To have a work program that is as close to modalities as possible So if we can get to for example full modalities by July perfect But the the goal is to be as close to modalities as we can when July that's that's that's that's the purpose If we don't get to full modalities right by July then we have to see how far we are and Decide what the next step would be and then we'll decide what that means in terms of chronology On the egg subsidies it is clearly a very important part of the conversations As you know since 2008 things have changed considerably on that front and I think what we need now is precisely to have a conversation to look at Where are we today? What are The political realities of today's world as far as domestic support is concerned and then That conversation is precisely the one that that we need to have I Don't have enough elements at this point in time to say how ambitious we can be there It's too early in the conversation to do that But clearly there is a sense that this is this is going to be one of the critical Elements of the conversation Thank you very much. Can we have the microphone in the first row here the lady in the middle, please? Thank you Gunilla von Hall Swedish Spanska dog blooded. I have another question and it concerns the ECB decision Whose position the ECB's European Central Bank decision this week How do you think this is going to affect the outlook for world trade? Do you think this will mean increased trade increased consumption? Thank you for the for such a delicate question Mm-hmm principally it should strengthen the trade within the European Union and Over the boundaries of the European Union, but the first and principle idea behind is to to win time so to make sure that European countries get a chance to attack some structural problems, but I assume that the trade volume gets stimulated in a positive way well One of the reasons that the economists tell me that the growth in trade Has not been as significant as before is because the contribution of the European Union has been small The EU is I think Responsible for about a third of global trade so it's a it's a big chunk and to the extent that the European economy is not Growing fast enough. Of course trade suffers to the extent that the measures taken by the ECB are Precisely directed to foster economic growth if that economic growth comes about We should see a pickup on trade not only in the EU, but globally so I hope that That these goals are achieved Thank you very much. Do we have any other questions? Yes, the gentleman there, please My name is Kelly. Do you pet us and I'm from more of Eastern in Denmark? Mr. Asa whether have you gotten any guarantees from The ministers today that they stand by all commitments so far in Doha and that no one will backtrack and Secondly, do you think the timing is right? Giving that the World Bank issued a report earlier this week saying all major commodities including egg commodities Dropping in prices and hence the demand for egg subsidies may be increasing Thank you. Thank you very much. I think that was the second question over there. Can I see their hands? Yes, mr. Fisher Fisher from the end said Minister was talking about new ways of engagement that are needed. Could you evolve a little bit on on that still and Second in given that it's 20 years now Are there any discussions whether the WTO should have any institutional changes? for example in decision-making or so to improve and Last question the T tip and T TPP. How do you see the interrelation between the Progress making in the Doha round and these two big trade initiatives? Thank you very much. So we had a question on the commodity prices and Start with the first one First group of questions so on on on backtracking. I think The the idea today what I understood that the ministers want to do and they agreed to do I actually asked them to consider that and they agree that that would be the way forward Is to look at the situation of the world today? Look at what they think can be done at this point in time So what kind of how big a step can we take at this point? How far do our legs today allow us to reach and it may well be that in some areas we can go further It may be that in some other areas. We need to to be more conservative And we will only know when we have the conversation and when we talk to each other about that and we haven't really done that Up to now and that's the major shift up to now conversations were mostly about Who was or who was not In a position to do you know what we had agreed until 2008 and there was a lot of finger-pointing and a lot of Accusations you know on from one side and the other about this one is doing this that one is doing that We decided that we have to change the conversation We're going to now look at the world today and say so where are we? What are the things that are actually doable? What are the things that are feasible at this point in time? What can we do? How far can we go? How ambitious can we get in the different areas? Maybe some areas like I said, you can be more ambitious in other areas. You can be less ambitious It will depend it will depend on precisely on this conversation. So I I think that people are open-minded and At this point, we don't know what that conversation is going to yield On the commodity prices. That's precisely what what I was just saying So the world changed there was a period where commodity prices were very high now the commodity prices are going low And if we look at history, they're going to go up at some point in time again And they're going to go down again at some point in time. So that's that's economics I mean that's that's the reality of the world But the most important now is to see about you know the the political circumstances in each of the members Each one responded to the crisis with different programs with different policies and these things changed the the kind of Political sensitivities that we have before us. So that's what we have to look at and see what can be done So that's that's where we are Can you ask the question again because our online audience will not be able to hear you without the microphone? Thanks the follow-up whether you actually may be in the position that you have to start again from scratch in Doha No, no, no, I don't think so. I think you have a mandate It is clear that nobody is reopening the mandate. So the mandate is the same The areas that we have to deliver are those ones that has already been pretty well defined. It is about calibration it is about figuring out The fine-tuning how how how far do we go in one area? How far can we go in another area? Well, that's that's what it is about. It's not about Throwing all the work that we have done out of the window and starting from scratch It is never going to happen on the contrary what we want to do is build on What we have done already is to preserve as much as possible of what we have done and the work that we developed over the years if I may Institutional questions were not the topic of the two days ministerial and What really matters is that we're going to achieve results by the ministerial conference in December in Nairobi we spoke about the year of of Credibility in other words if we achieve Results if we can Conclude the Bali package Definitely, we will have solved the credibility of the WTO WTO is that a 20 years anniversary. Yes, and this needs should be understood as a Initial point for the next 20 years Multilaterality is still of the utmost Importance and that was confirmed by all the ministers who participated in the two days meeting and I want to confirm to you That the ministers have demonstrated a willingness to Meet each other in a open in a frank and in a constructive way I'm now me to participating since fifth five years in this Process it was the clearest commitment today I ever could Live me to in other words, I'm very positive. I'm encouraged after this meeting We we have a will we demonstrated a will and Roberto mentioned it before it's a it's a it's a giving and taking at the same time and the detailed discussions Needs at least the upcoming 10 months To bring up a positive result. It's now the time. We want to Bring the multilaterality first Thank you very much. I think we have time for one more question John, please John Hubbard and associated press. I'm just curious if you Would agree that there's a war of sanctions Between Russia and the West over Ukraine and if so if you think that that has actually Or maybe the institution that every to has it actually helped to in any way to reduce tensions Maybe that's a proper function of the organization to sort of take some of those tensions And put them in an institutional rather than military form. I don't know just wondering what your comments are on that Thank you Well It's a very political Issue you rise. I would very generally answer to you each multinational organization is Expected to contribute to bring Partners together to lower the tensions and hence the WTO by is a Important role in this context as well Well, I I entirely agree It is One of the functions of the WTO to serve as a forum for dialogue as a forum for Conversations and for consultations and members use that they use that quite a lot actually one of the things that we that we do is precisely that is to bring issues trade issues to the WTO Members consult and they in the regular bodies and then if they don't they're not happy with the result of those Conversations they ask for consultations under the dispute settlement mechanism And after that they may take it to dispute settlement in that, you know, you have a technical very objective assessment of the implementation of the disciplines If members but it's essentially the members who will decide how they want to use the organization how they want to use the institution to approximate positions and to Reduce tensions It the organization does not go out there Proactively trying to solve problems that it's not in my competence or the competence of the organization It is the members who will decide how best the organization can serve them Inapproximating position. So that's entirely in the hands of the members how they want to use the organization There was also a question. I don't want to skip that About the relationship between the these regional agreements t-tip and TPP and the DDA My view is that Trade liberalization is contagious It is a frame of mind. So to the extent that you have big countries big blocks thinking about trade liberalization negotiating agreements approximating positions Developing rules and disciplines that should inspire the work of the organization that should inspire the work of the WTO I don't think that it in any way detracts or in any way Reduces the possibility of progress in the DDA on the contrary it should Enhance the possibility of progress in the multilateral system. So I'm very Optimistic and hopeful that these agreements come to a successful conclusion On decision-making if you are asking about consensus, it's not going to disappear It's as simple as that not today not tomorrow not ever to begin the question is not Whether we we we we change the process of decision is how do we deliver With the process of decision that we have today the big the the first countries that are not going to agree on Abandoning the consensus rule are the big ones. They are not going to agree to voting mechanism in the WTO it has it's it's just Politically impossible. It's not going to happen. So to answer your question very bluntly. No, it's not going to change the decision-making Process in the WTO is not going to change It's about we have pro-relaterals We have several pro-relaterals in the WTO. We have the government procurement agreement We have the civil aircraft agreement. We have the ITA the information technology agreement, which in fact We are trying to expand now. We have negotiations on environmental goods. So pro-relaterals are not a novelty. It's about Which kind of of a of a pro-relateral and whether members want to do it? The the consensus rule doesn't stop members from reaching pro-relat. It depends on the type of pro-relat That's what what what it's about. But that's a more technical conversation, but Members are free to to to work in a non multilateral format at any time that they want in the WTO Thank you very much. We have reached the end of this press conference. Thank you. Mr. Asavados. Thank you, Mr. Schneider-Aman. Thank you for joining us today and Thank you for watching