Apec ministers signalled their determination to rejuvenate the World Trade Organisation at a meeting hosted by New Zealand overnight, and agreed to reduce barriers to the flow of Covid vaccine equipment.
A statement issued by ministers in the early hours of Sunday morning dashed the Governments hopes of abolishing tariffs on vaccines and related goods within Apec, but encouraged countries to review charges levied at the border.
Ministers also agreed to expedite the transit of all Covid vaccines and related goods by adopting a set of best-practice guidelines.
Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan said ahead of the meeting that discussions within Apec on responding to Chinese trade sanctions against the country had been made more difficult because Apec meetings hosted by New Zealand this year cant take place face-to-face due to Covid.
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Speaking to media ahead of the meeting, Tehan said that, normally, when Apec was taking place in person, ministers would be able to talk in the margins of the conferences about these types of issues referring to possible needs to diversify trade away from China.
But Tehan indicated he was encouraged the statement agreed by ministers included a very clear reaffirmation of the World Trade Organisation, global rules, and making sure everyone adheres to them.
The Apec statement said ministers were determined to ensure the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference in December delivered tangible results.
We will cooperate to further enhance the role of the WTO in establishing rules that support a free, fair, predictable, non-discriminatory, transparent, and open trade and investment environment, it said.
Talks focused on trade, Covid and climate change.
United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai told media ahead of the meeting that there were parts of its trade relationship with China that were not balanced and have over time been damaging in some very important ways to the US economy.
We also see imbalance in the WTO, she said, describing its disputes resolution process as a very powerful and overbearing litigation function.
The US was committed to bringing balance back to the US-China trade relationship and the WTO, in terms of reforming and revitalising the WTO, she said.
The Apec statement reflected those comments, referring to frank discussions and necessary reform work to improve the WTOs functioning.
Covid vaccination programmes have been promoted by New Zealand as a possible standard-bearer for freer trade.
Apec ministers agreed to explore options to suspend subsidies on fossil fuels for those members that are in a position to do so and voiced support for the WTO achieving a meaningful agreement with effective disciplines on harmful fisheries subsidies by the end of July.
New Zealand Trade Minister Damien OConnor, who hosted the Apec meeting, said ahead of the meeting that he would be challenging his fellow ministers on those issues.
Apec ministers also supported discussions over a temporary waiver of some intellectual property protections on Covid vaccines, as soon as possible and no later than December.
Any decision on whether to waive intellectual property protections on vaccines, to allow companies that dont own them to manufacture them, would require a consensus at the WTO, OConnor said.
Apec could be a platform to revitalise multilateralism, but US Trade Representative Katherine Tai indicated the US still had bones to pick with the World Trade Organisation.
OConnor said he was very mindful that vaccines to fight Covid had been developed very quickly.
We have to respect that intellectual property. But these are extraordinary times.
We believe that if there are clearly barriers to the roll-out of vaccines caused by intellectual property, then we should seek a waiver, he said.
If it is intellectual property that is holding us back, I think there will be a consensus reached at the WTO and I think as Apec economies we are going to ask for that to be considered seriously, he said.