WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/DS27/24
9 September 1998
(98-3565)
Original:  Spanish
EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES – REGIME FOR THE IMPORTATION,
SALE AND DISTRIBUTION OF BANANAS
Request to Join Consultations
Communication from Colombia
The following communication, dated 9 September 1998, from the Permanent Mission of
Colombia to the Permanent Delegation of the Eur opean Commission is circulated pursuant to the
procedure provided for under Article 21.5 of the DSU.
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The Government of Colombia takes note of the request of Ecuador, the United States,
Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico for consultations concerning the amendments to Regulation 404/93
adopted by the Council of Agriculture Ministers on 26 June 1998 and published on 28 July 1998 in
the EC Official Journal (EC 1637/98).
As a major banana producer whose exports to the European Union during the period 1995 to
1997 exceeded 23 per cent of total non-preferential imports, Colombia has a substantial trade interest
in this matter.
In view of this substantial trade interest and bearing in mind that Article 21 of the
Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes (DSU) contains no
special provisions concerning the participation of third parties, the Government of Colombia, pursuant
to Article XXII of the GATT and paragraph 4.11 of the DSU, requests to be joined in theabove-mentioned consultation procedures.
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