EU Statement at the General Council Meeting, 06-07 October 2025

EU Statement at the General Council Meeting, 06-07 October 2025

Statement Delivered by Ambassador João Aguiar Machado

2. Incorporation of the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement into Annex 4 of the WTO Agreement - Draft Decision (WT/GC/W/927/Rev.3)

Thank you, Chair.

• 590 days have passed since the Joint Ministerial Declaration on IFD at MC13.

• 442 days have passed since the request for legal incorporation of the IFD Agreement was first tabled for decision at the General Council.

• Today, 127 Members are asking the question: how many more days shall pass until the IFD Agreement finally sees the light of day?

• Attracting investment is more important than ever as FDI flows have been constantly declining in the past years. The outlook for this year remains negative. It is particularly challenging for emerging markets and developing economies as weak FDI flows are threatening their development trajectories.

• We respect the decision of those Members that chose not to join the IFD Agreement for reasons they consider to be in their national interest. But it is less understandable and legitimate to block the vast majority of Members from benefiting from an Agreement that does not undermine anybody's interests and rights, but even benefits also the non-participants.

• I invite those Members to consider the voices of 90 developing countries, all expressing the pivotal role of this Agreement in their economic progress. Their sovereign assessments of their own development needs must be respected and supported, and shall not be dismissed.

• [Studies show that the IFD Agreement has the potential to generate substantial welfare gains estimated between USD 295 billion and USD 1,041 billion globally with most of those gains accruing to low- and middle-income countries. The time to act is now.]

• Let us remind ourselves that the Marrakesh Agreement envisions plurilateral agreements as integral to our framework, with Article X.9 providing the legal foundation. Denying the possibility of new plurilateral agreement would deprive Article X.9 of its purpose, rendering this WTO provision meaningless.

• Finding a solution on this matter will reinforce the integrity of the global trading system, showing the WTO's ability to achieve tangible development outcomes for all Members and demonstrate our organization's continued relevance and resilience.

• In this spirit, let me highlight the encouraging exchanges with other non-members in our "capital-to-capital" outreach. Several members are finalizing their assessment of the IFD Agreement.

• [As Co-Facilitators] we remain fully committed to continuing the dialogue with those Members who have expressed concerns and we stand ready to engage and clarify so that together we can pave the way for a prompt and effective resolution in integrating this Agreement into the WTO framework.

• Thank you.

4.1 WTO reform - report by facilitator

• I would like to thank the Facilitator, Ambassador Olberg, for his report on the plenary and consultations held so far and all his efforts on this challenging and vital process for the organisation.

• I will not repeat the EU statement from the plenary session on WTO reform but let me make just a few brief remarks on the process going forward.

• While we see a stronger sense of urgency and momentum building up on WTO reform since the summer break, we still see the need for a shift in mindset and a spirit of compromise to allow us to reach outcomes at MC14.

• We agree with the Facilitator's plan to start with track 1 on governance reform and address how the organisation can reach decisions and how to inject more flexibility into system. The EU will feed into the reflections on this topic.

• We would also advocate for track 2 to start very soon to address other critical aspects of fairness such as the changed global trade landscape and the need to level the playing field.

• Chair, let me conclude by underscoring that the EU plans to play a very active role in this process in support of the Facilitator. In parallel, we would encourage members to work in different configurations in support of the process.

4.2 Work Programme on Electronic Commerce - Report by the Facilitator

• The EU welcomes the discussions in the E-commerce Work Programme under the leadership of Ambassador Brown of Jamaica

• We see the Work Programme and the moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions as an important contribution to achieving an inclusive, predictable and rules-based international digital trading environment.

• Members of the Work Programme concur on the need to deliver concrete outputs and recommendations to Ministers at the next MC, as mandated by the MC13 decision.

• On the Work Programme, the EU is ready to continue to work with the Secretariat in order to ensure delivery of the outcomes, including the compilation of technical cooperation activities.

• For the EU, agreeing by MC14 on a stable solution for the moratorium on custom duties for electronic transmissions remains a priority. If the moratorium were to end this would jeopardize progress to date towards the digital economy, threaten legal predictability and risk fragmentation in the conditions and ability for Members to participate in global digital trade.

• The EU urges Members to show leadership on this issue and to find a solution in advance of MC14.

• In this context, we welcome the growing consensus amongst members on the importance of the moratorium.

• We look forward to discussions with the Facilitator and Members on the concrete outcomes for MC14 and beyond.