38. The Chairperson recalled that the discussion on this matter, after the information-gathering exercise in 1997, had focused on the question of what the next step should be for carrying forward work concerning negotiations for the establishment of an international system for the notification and registration of geographical indications under Article 23.4. A proposal on the matter had been received from the delegation of the European Communities just prior to the previous meeting of the Council and briefly discussed during the informal consultations of 16 July 1998.
