Ministers from 149 members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on Sunday congratulated Saudi Arabia and Tonga on their accession to the WTO.

"We welcome those new members who have completed their accession processes since our last Session," said a ministerial declaration issued at the conclusion of the Sixth Ministerial Conference.

Saudi Arabia became WTO's new member ahead of the Dec. 13-18 Hong Kong meeting while Tonga, a Pacific island, signed a protocol Thursday to accede to the global trading system.

Tonga's membership will be complete after its legislature ratifies the agreement and it will become a formal WTO member 30 days after the ratification.

The ministers also expected other WTO observers to join the group soon.

"We continue to attach priority to the 29 ongoing accessions with a view to concluding them as rapidly and smoothly as possible, " it said.

The ministers have been meeting here since Tuesday in a new bid to advance the Doha Round talks, which have bogged down in a deadlock over farm subsidies pitting mainly rich countries against poor ones.

The Doha Round talks, launched in the Qatari capital in 2001, aim to lift barriers to trade and reduce poverty in developing countries.

Source: Xinhua