Few concrete proposals are on the table to move the reform of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) forward, lamented Cecilia Malmström, European Trade Commissioner, on her return from Shanghai on Wednesday 6 November, in her report to the European Parliament on the outcome of the discussions at the mini-ministerial on 5 November convened by the Chinese government.
Even more “acute” – Malmström reminded MEPs of the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade – was the need to avoid paralysis of the organisation’s Appellate Body in December 2019, by convincing Washington to lift its veto on the appointment of new members (see EUROPE 12271/16, 12264/16, 12262/12).
The ‘Walker Report’, submitted by the New Zealand Ambassador, was not received favourably by Washington (see EUROPE 12350/16). The dispute settlement mechanism will quickly be restricted to a one-step procedure, via panels, especially since the Appellate Body may not even close pending appeals due to the possible departure of the US arbitrator from the body.
The alternative solution promoted by the EU – an ad hoc temporary bilateral mechanism – is far from having convinced a sufficient number of countries to be taken to the plurilateral level. It may be necessary to wait “until the last second” to see other members engage in this solution – and in particular those states with which Europeans have the most disputes.
However, the sense of urgency prevailing in the EU does not seem to be shared by many other countries present at the meeting, regretted Ms Malmström.
Nur-Sultan 2020
As for the 12th WTO Ministerial Meeting, scheduled to take place in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, in early June 2020, “we must be realistic”, warned the Commissioner, stressing that “it will take serious efforts to achieve something”.
To “restore the viability of the WTO to the centre of the world trading system”, it is necessary to work to improve its regulatory function. But members are struggling to agree on rules on fisheries support, which seemed within reach at the last ministerial meeting (see EUROPE 12300/14).
Ongoing plurilateral initiatives
Discussions on services domestic regulation seem close to their conclusion. A progress report will also be made in June on the discussions on electronic commerce and investment facilitation. The moratorium on the imposition of customs duties on electronic transmissions (e-commerce moratorium) will probably be renewed.
As for other ways of reviving this almost moribund WTO – which mainly aim to guarantee fair conditions between Member States (industrial support, forced technology transfers, transparency) – progress has not yet been decisive.
At the end of what should be the last meeting with the outgoing Commissioner, Ms Malmström expressed a more personal opinion on the future of the WTO: “if the WTO is to survive, it must have rules on sustainability”. (Original version in French by Hermine Donceel)