\u201cIn short, we are very close to a Yaound\u00e9 package of agreements that would be important for Members and the future of the organization. We\u2019ve worked really hard here, and we are very close, but we\u2019re not all the way there yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Okonjo-Iweala suggested that members use the draft texts developed over the four days of ministerial discussions to finalize agreements on outstanding issues in further discussions at WTO headquarters in Geneva.<\/p>\n
These included the reform work plan that was meant to be the main deliverable of the meeting, and the extension of the e-commerce moratorium that is due to expire on Monday.<\/p>\n
Multiple officials had indicated earlier that a compromise was emerging around a four-year extension of the moratorium, paired with a roughly one-year sunset clause designed to give businesses time to adjust.<\/p>\n
Washington was pushing for a far longer horizon for the e-commerce moratorium \u2014 with U.S. negotiators seeking a 10-year commitment. Brazil threw a last-minute spanner in the works and was vetoing efforts to extend the moratorium altogether.<\/p>\n