13 countries call for urgent reform of WTO

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13 countries call for urgent reform of WTO

 

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Arab and international Economy News Baghdad: Trade ministers from 13 countries on Thursday called for urgent reform of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in the face of an "unsustainable situation" between the rise of protectionism and rules no longer appropriate . "We are deeply concerned by the recent developments in international trade, especially the rise of protectionism, which has negative implications for the WTO and jeopardizes the entire multilateral trading system," said trade ministers from the 13 countries at the end of a meeting called by Canada . The government of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for this meeting to "identify concrete ways to improve the WTO in the short, medium and long term ." Trade ministers from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, South Korea, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Switzerland and the European Union attended the meeting . A growing number of countries, especially the European Union, as well as the United States and Canada, believe that the World Trade Organization (WTO) does not adequately address the trade imbalance caused by China, which is accused of injecting huge sums into its economy . The World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank warned in a joint report published on September 30 that the absence of an amendment to the rules of international trade could undermine the growth of the world economy and the decline of poverty . After a two-day meeting, the 13 countries acknowledged in a joint statement that "growing trade tensions are linked to major changes in the global trade route," in particular the protective containment of the United States . Trade ministers stressed that they were "determined to take swift and agreed action to meet these unprecedented challenges and restore confidence," noting that the Ottawa meeting identified three areas requiring "urgent consideration ". "First, we insist that the dispute settlement system is a cornerstone of the WTO," while the United States refused to appoint new judges to the panel. The ministers considered the rejection "a threat to the entire WTO system ". If the situation remains the same, the arbitral tribunal may cease to function at the end of 2019 . "Second, the WTO negotiating mechanism must be revitalized," the trade ministers said, arguing that the rules of the organization must be "modernized to take better account of the realities of the 21st century ." Without mentioning China, the statement stressed "the need to address market imbalances resulting from financial support and other tools ." In the third point, trade ministers who will meet again in January 2019 stressed that "we must strengthen the follow-up and transparency of trade policies of the WTO member countries." Views 67   Date Added 10/26/2018