Brussels, 04/05/2000 (Agence Europe) - Ecuador's Minister for Foreign Affairs said he was optimistic over the possibility of announcing, by next 18 May, an agreement over European compensation over the banana case, due to which Quito will renounce the measure of retaliation authorised by the World Trade Organisation (WTO). In calling the Europeans to show solidarity with his country, in full economic, social and political crisis, the head of Ecuadorian diplomacy presented, on Wednesday in Brussels, "a compensation plan", with three options: a) the use on unused contingencies of 325,000 tons of bananas; b) European financing in the social domain and for the restructuring of the banana sector; c) the partial cancellation of the country's foreign debt.
This offer will be discussed on Friday with the European Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy.