Address by Minister Mauro Vieira at the Ministerial meeting of Latin American member countries of the WTO - Santiago de Chile, Jan. 26, 2024

Dear Minister Alberto Van Klaveren Stork,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Brazil considers this regional meeting extremely timely to address international trade challenges and to prepare for the next WTO ministerial meeting, the MC13. Together, we are surely stronger to defend our common interests and aspirations.

Regional integration is a priority for President Lula and the construction of a regional vision for the WTO is in perfect dialogue with this crucial objective for all of us.

As a developing country, Brazil wants a strengthened and modernized WTO, which fully incorporates into its agenda the perspective of development, particularly sustainable development, in its three dimensions: environmental, economic and social.

Sustainable development is clearly at the heart of many of the most pressing issues facing the international community today, including with respect to international trade.

Our objective for MC13 – and beyond – is to have a multilateral trading system that is prepared for today's economic and social challenges, without neglecting issues that have been discussed for many years and that have broad economic and social impact on our countries. like agriculture.

Certainly, it is a joy and a great achievement for the region that our coordination in agriculture is increasingly stronger. I believe that Latin America is advancing rapidly to occupy a special role not only in the dynamics of the WTO in agriculture, but also as a key region to guarantee food security at a global level.

At the WTO, there are often attempts to relegate agriculture to the background. Our region has to be united and demonstrate that on this issue there are possible convergences and that immediate concrete results must be produced.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The discussion about the uniform distribution of the benefits of trade among the population is another issue of the social dimension of development in which our region can stand out.

The vast majority of members of the Global Agreement on Trade and Gender, for example, are Latin American countries. Brazil recently announced its decision to join this agreement.

This is a decision focused on strengthening female participation in trade and investment flows, and promoting their economic empowerment. I think we can have concrete progress in the MC13 in this area.

We still cannot forget the issue of the worrying increase in protectionism around the world. The use of environmental issues as a cover for protectionist measures is one of the drivers of this trend.

Environmental sustainability is a top priority, but cannot be used as a justification for protectionism.

A comprehensive agreement on fisheries subsidies, with effective special and differential treatment, is a way for the WTO to demonstrate that trade and the environment can and should go hand in hand.

On the other hand, unilateral measures erode the fundamental pillars of environmental agreements and threaten the very viability of the multilateral trading system. These measures unbalance the multilateral concessions hard negotiated in the WTO long ago, and affect mainly the exports of developing countries.

Brazil believes that trade, industrial policy and climate policy can support each other and represent a key factor in achieving high levels of social well-being, fostering a green transformation in our economies and achieving sustainable development.

It is essential that developing countries effectively join the technological and productive revolution necessary to guarantee the sustainability of our planet – and this time not only as exporters of raw materials. The WTO can and must contribute to achieving this result.

Brazil also considers it a priority to continue moving forward to fulfill the mandate of reestablishing the dispute settlement system.

The paralysis of the Appellate Body and the weakening of the dispute settlement system are not in the interest of developing countries.

With coordinated action, our region will make a very important contribution not only to the success of MC13, but also to the revitalization of the WTO itself. Brazil stands ready to join the entire region in achieving this essential objective for our people.

Thank you so much.