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12 June 2022 
(22-4439) Page: 1/2 
Ministerial Conference  
Twelfth Session  
Geneva, 12 -15 June 2022  Original: English  
 
 
STATEMENT BY H.E. MR DUKGEUN  AHN 
MINISTER FOR TRADE, MINISTRY OF  
TRADE, INDUSTRY AND ENERGY  
REPUBLIC OF KOREA 
Let me first express my heartfelt appreciation to the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Swiss 
Confederation, and Director -General Ngozi for hosting and arranging MC12, despite numerous 
obstacles.  
 
The past five years have been unusually tumultuous. We have witn essed devastation in trade and 
economic growth  at an unprecedented level amid the aftermath of the COVID -19 pandemic.  
 
Furthermore, the recent geopolitical conditions and the consequent food and energy crises are 
placing downward pressure on the resilience  of the global economy and trade.  
 
Given these surroundings, it is critical to expand and stabilize trade upon a multilateral trading 
system if we are to overcome the crisis and to secure mutual prosperity.  
 
To that end, we should strive to make changes o n the following  three fronts:  
 
First, the WTO has to do things together , to tackle pressing issues.  
 
The COVID -19 pandemic is not just a common issue threatening the lives and livelihoods of all 
people. It requires a concerted response to forestall the emergence of a new variant and further 
spread.  
 
The WTO should swiftly draft measures that can contribute to ending the pandemic by ensuring 
seamless trade of medical goods such as vaccines and arriving at a reasonable solution on IP issues.  
 
The latest food security crisis also requires us to take a multilateral response to avoid the 
fragmentation of global food supply and trade.  
 
WTO Members should work together to ensure that global food production and supply are efficient, 
and that develop ing countries, including LDCs, and vulnerable groups have easy access to food.  
 
Second, the WTO has to do more , to respond to global issues more proactively.  
 
Boundaries between international trade and other policy areas are becoming more obscured, and 
the world expects trade policies to take a more active role in addressing global issues.  
 
As emerging issues, such as climate change, supply chains,  and digitalization are finding more and 
more common grounds with the WTO, a timely response i s becoming essential.  
 
Also, the WTO should be more inclusive, encompassing developing countries, including LDCs, micro, 
small and medium -sized enterprises (MSMEs), and women.  
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  Lastly, the WTO has to do things better , to face current issues more effectivel y. 
 
As we all know, there are mounting concerns over WTO 's three major functions. With its negotiating 
function in a stalemate, discussions on trade liberalization and the creation of new trade norms have 
been stalled.  
 
The WTO's monitoring function is bei ng compromised, due to the insufficient level of compliance 
with the WTO's notification requirements.  
 
It is imperative that the dispute settlement function be restored and the effectiveness of the WTO 
rules secured.  
 
As such, we should reform the WTO and restore its functions as a whole, thereby delivering a system 
that is capable of effectively addressing different global challenges .  
 
The main agenda and deliverables of MC12 highlight our interest and efforts to de al with  the three 
aforementioned tasks:  
 
A comprehensive package of measures should be established at the WTO level (encompassing IP 
rights issues) to overcome COVID -19 pandemic and, in particular, to facilitate vaccine production 
and supply, and effective multilateral measures should be identified to reinforce global food security.  
 
Not just this, meaningful progress needs to be made on the fisheries subsidies negotiations to 
regulate subsidies that lead to the depletion of global marine resources. We also need progress  on 
the e-commerce moratorium and most importantly,  on WTO reform to restore the multilateral 
trading system.  
 
Considering that MC12 was unexpectedly postponed due to the outbreak of the Omicron variant of 
COVID -19 late last year, the sheer fact that we are gathered together  marks a meaningful start.  
 
With the latest geopolitical realities, in particular, we all know that it is never easy for 164 member 
countries to sit at a negotiating table.  
 
However, we should agree on the future path for the WTO to follow at this MC12 and  waste no time 
in working towards the goal of achieving tangible outcomes before the next MC13.  
 
Uncertainties continue to surround us on many fronts. Nevertheless , I have every conviction that 
MC12 will serve as a chance for ministers from member countrie s to usher in a bright future for the 
WTO and the multilateral trad ing system.  
 
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