WTO at 'critical juncture' and needs deep reform, EU and CPTPP say

By Olivia Le Poidevin

YAOUNDE, March 27 (Reuters) - The World Trade Organisation is at a "critical juncture" and needs deep reform, the European Union and parties to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership said on Friday.

The EU and the CPTPP - which comprises 12 countries, including Australia, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Malaysia and Britain - met on the sidelines of the WTO ministerial conference in Cameroon on Friday.

"The WTO is at a critical juncture amid heightened tensions in the global trading system," they said in the joint statement.

Representatives from both groups recognised the need for "urgent, deep, comprehensive and inclusive reform of the WTO."

They said they seek to "enhance cooperation" among like-minded WTO members in order to drive improvements to the global trading system, while also working together to cooperate on areas of mutual interest.