Geneva, February 22, 2024.- Cuba will be present at the XIII WTO Ministerial Conference, which will be held from February 26 to 29 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
A few days before the start of the conference, the Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations Office in Geneva and other international organizations based in Switzerland, remain active in the previous negotiations taking place in that city. Members of the Organization are still debating various issues, with the aim of reaching a consensus that will enable them to agree on the Abu Dhabi Ministerial Declaration. However, the conference is expected to begin with unfinished business that will require political guidance from ministers for decision-making.
The conference will examine issues related to agriculture; fishing subsidies; the dispute resolution reform process; trade and development, the principle of special and differential treatment, among others.
Intense working days are planned, among which there will be two ministerial conversations related to the themes of Trade and sustainable development and Trade and inclusion. The conference is expected to approve the work mandate of the Organization for the next two years.
As part of the event, Timor-Leste and Comoros will be welcomed as new members of the Organization; with which the total number of members will increase to 166.
The Cuban delegation will be chaired by the Cuban Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, Norberto Escalona Carrillo, and will be composed of officials from the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Investment and the Permanent Mission of the Island in Geneva.
Permanent Mission of Cuba in Geneva