US embassy cable - 04TEGUCIGALPA1567

UNCLAS TEGUCIGALPA 001567 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR WHA/CEN, WHA/EPSC, AND EB 
STATE PASS USTR FOR JWOLFE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD, ECON, EAGR, PGOV, HO, WTO 
SUBJECT: HONDURAS READY TO ADVANCE ON DOHA, UNEASY ABOUT G- 
90 
 
REF: A) State 150176 
 
     B) Tegucigalpa 778 
     C) Urs July 12 e-mail 
 
1. (U) EconOff delivered ref A talking points to Vice 
Minister for External Trade Irving Guerrero on July 13.  As 
Honduran officials have stated in the past (ref B), the GOH 
is eager to move forward with the Doha Round negotiations 
and are generally supportive of U.S. positions, but regard 
themselves as largely peripheral to the major conflicts 
which have slowed progress on the negotiations thus far. 
 
2. (SBU) Vice Minister Guerrero expressed some concern about 
the formation of the G-90 group of developing countries, and 
the attention being paid to this group by both the USG and 
the European Union.  He raised the fear that the focus on 
the G-90 will "divide poor countries into two groups", with 
those developing countries outside the G-90 (such as 
Honduras) being left out of key conversations. 
 
3. (SBU) Regarding the selection of a successor to WTO 
Director General Supachai, Guerrero stated that Honduras has 
not yet chosen a preferred candidate, but he shared the 
sense (ref C) that a high ranking official with greater 
international clout would be preferable to a lower level 
official such as a former trade minister, given the crucial 
period ahead for the organization. 
 
Palmer