2006年VOA标准英语-Vietnam WTO Accession Within Reach

By Matt Steinglass
Hanoi
12 October 2006

A Vietnamese delegation¹ in Geneva is negotiating with a group of other countries to hammer out a final agreement on Vietnam's accession to the World Trade Organization. A deal could be reached in a day or two, allowing Vietnam greater access to the world's markets.

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A definitive² agreement allowing Vietnam to join the World Trade Organization could be reached by Friday.

Eirik Glenne is Norway's ambassador to the WTO and he is chairman of the multilateral negotiations³ on Vietnam's accession that began on Monday in Geneva.

"Hopefully, it depends of course on how these consultations⁴ are going, but hopefully we will have an agreement by the end of the week," he said. "Which we will then have to formalize later on."

The multilateral negotiations are the final substantial hurdle⁵ in Vietnam's effort to join the WTO. Vietnam has already concluded bilateral⁶ agreements with each of the member countries that requested them, including major trading partners such as the United States, the European Union and China.

But a number of countries, some of which have bilateral agreements with Vietnam, have raised new concerns in the multilateral round. Glenne says those countries are negotiating informally to resolve the remaining issues.

"We have now a group of countries, it's not all the working party because not all of the working party's members are equally interested in the remaining issues, but there are some countries, less than 10, that are participating in these informal consultations now," he said.

Glenne declined to specify⁷ which countries are involved or what the issues are. But the official Vietnam News Agency announced Wednesday that the remaining disputes include Vietnam's special consumption tax, which applies to luxury goods such as cars and cigarettes; its favoring of companies in special economic zones; and its granting of trading monopolies on certain goods to state-owned companies. Other countries are also pushing Vietnam to adopt sanitary⁸ measures to ensure the safety of food exports.

Other Vietnamese media reports have cited intellectual property rights as a major area of concern at the multilateral talks. Many developed countries that produce software, movies and books are concerned about illegal copying of their copyrighted works.

Joining the WTO has been a prime foreign policy objective for Vietnam for years. Membership is necessary for Vietnam's export-driven economy to compete with rivals who are already members, such as China.

The country's leaders had hoped to join before Hanoi hosts the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit this November. But once the working group reaches an agreement, Vietnam's candidacy must still be approved by the WTO's general council of 149 nations. The possibility that this could take place before the APEC summit appears increasingly remote.

1 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

2 definitive   

adj.确切的，权威性的；最后的，决定性的

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• No one has come up with a definitive answer as to why this should be so.至于为什么该这样，还没有人给出明确的答复。

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 consultations   

n.磋商（会议）( consultation的名词复数 )；商讨会；协商会；查找

参考例句：

• Consultations can be arranged at other times by appointment. 磋商可以通过预约安排在其他时间。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Consultations are under way. 正在进行磋商。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

6 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

7 specify   

vt.指定，详细说明

参考例句：

• We should specify a time and a place for the meeting.我们应指定会议的时间和地点。
• Please specify what you will do.请你详述一下你将做什么。

8 sanitary   

adj.卫生方面的，卫生的，清洁的，卫生的

参考例句：

• It's not sanitary to let flies come near food.让苍蝇接近食物是不卫生的。
• The sanitary conditions in this restaurant are abominable.这家饭馆的卫生状况糟透了。