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WTO: 2005 PRESS RELEASES

Press/394
11 January 2005
DIRECTOR-GENERAL

Supachai welcomes EU — US decision on aircraft dispute

Director-General Supachai Panitchpakdi today welcomed the decision taken by the European Union and the United States to negotiate a bilateral resolution to their ongoing dispute concerning aircraft subsidies rather than continue the cases they had brought in October to the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body.

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“The WTO’s dispute settlement system has proven itself to be highly effective in resolving disputes and in focusing attention on commercial disagreements which had previously strained relations between countries. But our resources are not infinite and the high level of visibility given to cases before the DSB can sometimes make settlement more difficult. I commend both parties in choosing the path of commercial diplomacy rather than conflict,” he said.