The UK hosted the first meeting of G7 Trade Ministers by videoconference, chaired by UK Trade Minister Liz Truss. EU Commissioner for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis and the new Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, also joined the meeting.
Participants committed to working together to reform the global trading system, to support free and fair trade.
For Mr Dombrovskis, the key message for his G7 interlocutors was: “Free, fair and inclusive trade is essential to help us overcome the Covid-19 pandemic, and to rebuild our economies in the interests of all our citizens”.
The British Trade Minister was more direct and on the attack. She stressed the urgent need to modernise world trade and reform the WTO. “If we fail to act, then we risk global trade fragmenting under the tyranny of the largest […] in which the big players feel they get to set the rules”, she said in her introductory remarks.
The reform of the WTO, in particular its dispute settlement system, is a fundamental step, she said. “We need to reform the dispute settlement system, stamp out unfair industrial subsidies and make sure everybody—large or small—is following the rules and being transparent”, she insisted. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)