13 to 18 March 2005
SECOND NEGOTIATION MEETING, KUNMING, PRC, 13–18 MARCH 2005
1. The Second Negotiation Meeting (the Meeting) on the Annexes and Protocols (Stage 3) of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Cross-Border Transport Agreement (the Agreement) was held in Kunming, Yunnan Province, People’s Republic of China (PRC), on 13–18 March 2005. The Meeting was jointly organized by the Ministry of Communications of the PRC, the People’s Government of Yunnan Province, and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The objective of the Meeting was to discuss and reach agreement on some Annexes and Protocols in Stage 3. The Meeting Program is attached as Appendix 1.
2. The participants of the Meeting consisted of delegations from the Kingdom of Cambodia, the People’s Republic of China, the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), the Union of Myanmar, the Kingdom of Thailand, and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. ADB staff and consultants (the ADB Team) facilitated the Meeting and served as resource persons. The list of participants is attached as Appendix 2.
3. H.E. Liu Caiming, Assistant Governor, People’s Government of Yunnan Province,PRC, opened the Meeting and welcomed the participants. He noted that the Agreement is an inevitable outcome and requirement of deepening GMS economic cooperation. He further noted that agreement on the Stage 3 Annexes and Protocols will lay the foundation for the success of the Second GMS Summit to be held in Kunming, PRC, on 4–5 July 2005.
4. In his Opening Statement, Mr. Yushu Feng, Senior Regional Cooperation Economist,ADB, stated that the finalization and signing of some Stage 3 annexes and protocols at the Second GMS Summit on 4–5 July 2005 will demonstrate the GMS countries’ continuing commitment to the GMS cooperation program. He further noted that the Agreement is a flagship of the GMS Economic Cooperation Program and a model for other regional cooperation programs.
5. The Meeting was held in plenary sessions including an opening session, and sessions on Annex 5: Cross-Border Movement of People, Annex 10: Conditions of Transport, Protocol 2: Charges Concerning Transit Traffic, Protocol 3: Frequency and Capacity of Services and Issuance of Quotas and Permits, and Annex 6: Transit and Inland Customs Clearance Regime. The sessions were chaired by Mr. Li Guangling, Deputy Director General, Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Communications,PRC, and co-chaired by Mr. Yushu Feng and Mr. Ronald Butiong, Programs Specialist(GMS), ADB.
6. The Meeting negotiated the draft of the following annexes as shown in the table below.
| Annex | Location of Revised/Final Draft |
|
Annex 3: Carriage of Perishable Goods |
Appendix 3 (Final Draft) |
|
Annex 5: Cross-Border Movement of People |
Appendix 4 (Final Draft) |
|
Annex 10: Conditions of Transport |
Appendix 5 (Final Draft) |
|
Protocol 2: Charges Concerning Transit Traffic |
Appendix 6 (Final Draft) |
|
Protocol 3: Frequency and Capacity of Services and Issuance of Quotas and Permits |
Appendix 7 (Revised Draft) |
|
Annex 6: Transit and Inland Customs Clearance Regime |
Appendix 8 (Revised Draft) |
7. As shown in the above table, the Meeting agreed on the final drafts of the following four annexes/protocols: (i) Annex 3: Carriage of Perishable Goods, (ii) Annex 5: Cross-Border Movement of People, (iii) Annex 10: Conditions of Transport, and (iv) Protocol 2:Charges Concerning Transit Traffic. The Meeting agreed that internal preparations for the finalization of these annexes/protocols would be undertaken in each country as soon as possible in order to ensure that these are ready for signing at the Second GMS Summit to beheld in Kunming, Yunnan Province, PRC, on 4–5 July 2005. To ensure the accuracy of the documents to be signed and consistent with previous practice, it was agreed that the heads of the negotiation teams will be present to initial the documents prior to signing on 5 July 2005.
8. As agreed by the Meeting, in Parts II and III of the Final Draft of Annex 3 on the Carriage of Perishable Goods the word “shall” has been replaced by “should” to reflect the recommendatory nature of the standards.
9. Regarding Annex 5, the ADB Team agreed to provide, no later than 8 April 2005,further “order of magnitude” technical substantiation of the agreed limitation of carrier liability in the case of death or personal injury.
10. The Meeting noted that the liability of the consignor vis-à-vis the carrier will not be covered by Annex 10. Also regarding Annex 10, the Meeting noted that the ADB Team will circulate, no later than 8 April 2005, a model consignment note (the Attachment to the Annex) to the GMS countries for review.
11. The Meeting discussed two options for Protocol 3: Frequency and Capacity of Services and Issuance of Quotas and Permits: (i) a regulated approach (Step 1 according to Article 23 of the Agreement) and (ii) a liberal market forces driven approach (Step 2 according to Article 23 of the Agreement). The Meeting agreed that the first option, based on a regulated approach, be taken as a basis for negotiation. Issues raised by the Meeting included (i) whether a “vehicle passport” is required and (ii) whether the Contracting Parties may levy (cost-related) charges for road transport permits. The Meeting agreed to provide the ADB Team with their comments in writing no later than 29 April 2005.
12. The Meeting was presented with a revised draft of Annex 6: Transit and Inland Customs Clearance Regime. As background, the Meeting was informed of the completion of National Workshops on Issuing and Guaranteeing Organizations in relation to Annexes 6, 8,and 14, in all GMS countries, including workshops in Bangkok (December 2004), Hanoi(January 2005), Beijing (March 2005), Yangon (March 2005), Phnom Penh (March 2005), and Vientiane (March 2005). The workshops provided the necessary input for refinement of the two articles of these annexes on issuing and guaranteeing organizations, e.g., to establish alternative modalities, with the particular modalities to be decided by MOU between country pairs, similar to the approach in Article 4 of Annex 4: Facilitation of Frontier Crossing Formalities. The ADB Team will provide a consolidated report summarizing the six country workshops, no later than 15 April 2005. The Meeting took note of a proposed workshop to be hosted by the General Administration of China Customs and ADB on issues related to Annex 6, as well as Annex 8: Temporary Importation of Motor Vehicles, and Annex 14: Container Customs Regime, to be undertaken in the latter half of July 2005.
13. The Meeting noted the status of ratification of the Stage 1 and 2 Annexes and Protocols for each of the six GMS governments.1 Most or all of the GMS countries are likely to have ratified the Stage 1 and 2 Annexes and Protocols by December 2005. In addition to standard notification procedures for ratification of international agreements where Contracting Parties notify each other through diplomatic channels, the Meeting agreed that GMS governments will inform ADB of their ratification of the annexes and protocols, which in turn will advise the National Transport Facilitation Committees of the other GMS countries.
14. The Meeting agreed to explore the establishment of a depository and registration of the Agreement, its amendments, annexes, and protocols with the Secretariat of the United Nations (UN) in accordance with Article 102 of the UN Charter, which may increase the stature of the Agreement. The Meeting agreed that an amendment of the Agreement be formulated for this purpose. In this regard, the ADB Team will circulate an options paper on this subject drawing upon the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, no later than 29 April 2005.
15. The Meeting noted that the Second GMS Summit could provide a strong political mandate for the facilitation of cross-border transport of goods and people in the GMS. In this regard, the Meeting agreed to request the Task Force for the Second GMS Summit to consider incorporating in the Joint Summit Declaration that ratification of current and future signed annexes and protocols be expedited, and national laws and regulations be conformed to the Agreement and its Annexes and Protocols.2
16. A Meeting in lieu of Fact-Finding on Preparation of a Regional Technical Assistance(RETA) for Implementing the GMS Agreement to Facilitate the Cross-Border Transport of Goods and People – Phase II was held on 16 March 2005 (Appendix 9). The RETA will assist the National Transport Facilitation Committees (NTFCs, chaired by a vice minister or equivalent) of the GMS countries and the Joint Committee (involving representatives of the respective NTFCs) in the implementation of the Agreement through a number of measures to ensure the sustainability of the Agreement. The ADB Team was requested to proceed expeditiously with the proposed RETA to assure that it could be approved before the Second GMS Summit on 4–5 July 2005, to support the initial implementation of the Agreement.
17. The Meeting agreed that the Third Negotiation Meeting on Annexes and Protocols(Stage 3) will be held in Yangon, Myanmar during the second or third week of August 2005.The Meeting warmly welcomed the kind offer of Myanmar to host the meeting.
18. The Meeting adopted the Summary of Proceedings on 18 March 2005 in Kunming,Yunnan Province, PRC.
19. The GMS countries and the ADB Team expressed their sincere thanks and appreciation to the PRC, in particular, the Ministry of Communications and the People’s Government of Yunnan Province, for the warm hospitality and excellent arrangements provided to the Second Negotiation Meeting on Annexes and Protocols (Stage 3) of the GMS Cross-Border Transport Agreement.
References
1. Cambodia and the PRC expect ratification of the Stage 1 and Stage 2 annexes and protocols by the end of 2005,Lao PDR has already ratified the Stage 1 annexes/protocols and expects ratification of the Stage 2 annexes by June 2005, Myanmar expects ratification of the Stage 1 annexes/protocols by September 2005 and the Stage 2 annexes by the end of 2005, Thailand reported that ratification of Stage 1 and 2 annexes/protocol is in progress, and Viet Nam has already ratified the Stage 1 annexes/protocols and expects ratification of the Stage 2 Annexes by May 2005.
2. E.g., the promulgation or amendment of laws and regulations in some GMS countries to allow the extra territorial performance of duties by Competent Authorities as called for in Article 4(b) of the Agreement.
| File Name | Size | Last Modified |
|---|---|---|
| Report of the Second Negotiation Meeting , KUNMING, PRC.pdf | 57 KB | 12-11-2013 |
