RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE WT/GC/COM/1
7February 1995
ORGANIZATION(95-0227)
Original: Spanish GENERAL COUNCIL
31January 1995
Item 16
STATEMENT BYCOLOMBIA ATTHE GENERAL COUNCIL MEETING OF
31JANUARY 1995
Thefollowing statement wasmade bytherepresentative ofColombia withtherequest that
itbecirculated todelegations.
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TheDelegation ofColombia considers itbothnecessary andtimely toinform thisCouncil of
thestepsrecently taken bytheUnited States Government inrelation totheexport regime forbananas
fromColombia totheEuropean Union. Tobespecific, wearereferring totheinvestigation initiated
on9January bytheOffice oftheTrade Representative oftheUnited States withaviewtodetermining
themeasures tobetaken pursuant totheprovisions ofSection 301ofitsinternal Trade Act,thatis
tosay,theimposition ofunilateral sanctions.
Theactions andprocedures initiated bytheUnited States Administration seektoimpair the
legality oftheframework agreement forbananas concluded between theEuropean Union andColombia,
Costa Rica, Venezuela andNicaragua, despite thefactthatthisagreement isanintegral partofthe
institutions regulating international trade embodied intheFinal ActoftheUruguay Round, towhich
theUnited States isasignatory, asarethecountries members oftheAgreement inquestion.
Itistherefore notmerely surprising butparadoxical andextremely worrying thatninedays
aftertheentryintoforceandoperationoftheWorldTradeOrganization,endowedwithspecificfunctions
andmechanisms forthesettlement ofanydisputes thatmayariseamong itsmembers asaresult of
tradepolicies orpractices, theUnited States isdismissing anddisdaining thenewinstitutions andopting
touseitsdomestic lawandthepathofunilateral retaliation, thusviolating theexisting legalorder.
Wearenotconcerned hereandnow, Mr.Chairman, withtheunderlying reasons forthe
framework agreement forbananas, norwithitsorigins oritslegalstatus withrespect totherules of
GATT andtheWorld Trade Organization, noryetwithitseconomic andsocial justification. Weare
concerned above allwithfostering theuseoftherulesandprocedures wehaveadopted forthesettlement
ofdisputes. Mydelegation acknowledges therightofanymember country ofthisOrganization to
defend itstrade interests when itconsiders thattheyareunder threat, butatthesame timeitcannot
accept thatthisshould bedoneoutside oftheinstitutions which we,asMembers ofthisOrganization,
haveagreed upon toresolve trade conflicts impartially, objectively andinaccordance withthelaw,
rather thanunilaterally andarbitrarily.
Forthesereasons, atthisfirstsession oftheGeneral Council oftheWorld Trade Organization
Colombia wishes tourgetheUnited States toputanendtotheprocedures initiated withaview to
theapplication ofSection 301ofitsinternal Trade Act,andinvite it,ifitpersists initsviews asto
thevalidity intheframework agreement forbananas, tousethedispute settlement channels and
procedures established within thelegalorder oftheWorld Trade Organization.