In his November 17 interview with Our Staff Reporter Gong Wen, a concerned official from the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) explained matters concerning the approval of the agreement on and procedures for China's joining the World Trade Organization (WTO).

In his November 17 interview with Our Staff Reporter Gong Wen, a concerned official from the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) explained matters concerning the approval of the agreement on and procedures for China's joining the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The official said that a working group in charge of matters related to China's re-entry into GATT was set up by this organization after China presented on July 10, 1986 an application for return to GATT. China submitted a memorandum to GATT on the trade system for discussion and gave explanations on the questions raised by GATT members. China began in October 1992 bilateral talks on market accession with GATT members. On January 1, 1995, GATT was replaced by the World Trade Organization (WTO). In the same year, the working group in charge of China's return to GATT was renamed as the working group for China's accession to the WTO.

According to the official, once the working group finished deliberation on China's trade system and the bilateral talks on market accession concluded, an agreement on China's accession would be formed, which would comprise of three parts, namely, the protocol, the agreement on market accession (as appendix to the protocol), and the working group's report. After the agreement on accession was discussed and passed by the working group, it would be submitted to the General Council of the WTO or the Conference of Ministers for ratification. If more than two-thirds of the WTO member states vote for, China will have the right to sign the protocol and join the WTO. According to related provisions, China's entry into the WTO will take effect only after it is approved by the National People's Congress.

It is reported that the 23 WTO members engaging in bilateral talks on market accession with China, which have not yet been concluded, are: EU, Canada, Norway, Switzerland, Brazil, Chile, India, Colombia, Venezuela, Poland, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Argentina, Kirghizia, Uruguay, Guatemala, Peru, Morocco, Ecuador, Mexico, Cuba, and Thailand. Some of the member states just set their requirements but had not begun substantive negotiations. By November 15, countries that had reached agreements with China are: Hungary, Czech, Slovak, Japan, the ROK, Pakistan, New Zealand, Turkey, Singapore, Indonesia, Australia, Chile and the United States.