The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the global international organization that regulates trade between nations; that was established in 1995 and consists of 164 members. More precisely, this organization ensures that trade flow is smooth and that none of the countries imposes a tariff or non-tariff trade barriers. The role of the WTO is immensely important since it is the only international organization in the world that controls trade between almost all countries in the world.
One of the examples of the WTO’s achievements is that it has managed to establish international trade rules. The former chairman of the WTO’s Appellate Body, Julio Muro, claims that this is the WTO’s achievement because it is the first organization in world history that controls international trade via approved rules (World Trade Organization, 2008). More precisely, the WTO prohibits trade discrimination and encourages free trade, transparency, negotiations, and fair competition. Furthermore, the WTO steadily expands its influence on various spheres of international trade, including intellectual property rights and agricultural trade, for example. The second significant achievement of the WTO is its widening. In 1995, the organization included 112 nations, and now it contains 164 members. For instance, in 2016, Afghanistan and Liberia joined the WTO, and in 2015, Kazakhstan and Seychelles became its members (World Trade Organization). The organization’s expansion is significant because the more members it includes, the better the trade becomes on an international scale.
One of the challenges of the WTO could be exemplified by the ongoing China-US trade war that was officially declared in 2018. Even though the organization accused the US of imposing trade barriers and China of violating intellectual property rights, it had not changed the situation for the better. The second challenge of the WTO is that it ignores developing countries’ interests and focuses on the developed ones (World Trade Organization, 2008). Emerging countries commonly become members of agreements of more influential nations or multinational organizations that take advantage of their natural resources or cheap labor and make a withdrawal from the agreement unaffordable.
Refrerences
World Trade Organization (2008). The GATT/WTO at 60: Achievements and Challenges [Video]. YouTube. Web.
World Trade Organization. Members and Observers. Web.