Statement by
Ambassador Rita Derrick Hayes
U.S. Permanent Representative to the World Trade Organization

to the Dispute Settlement Body regarding European Efforts to Address WTO Mandates on the European Banana Regime

Geneva, February 24, 2000

The Commission's current proposal is not WTO-consistent, and will not resolve this dispute.

To date, we have heard no WTO-consistent alternatives from the Commission.

The Commission continues to manufacture differences among the complaining parties that do not exist. If the EC accept the Caribbean proposal as the basis for its new regime, it would find a large measure of convergence around a WTO-consistent proposal that protects the interests of the most vulnerable Caribbean suppliers.