Handelsorganisationen WTO er blevet tandløs, fordi USA har gjort WTO’s appeldomstol uarbejdsdygtig. Så bliver det ekstrem svært at hindre handelskrige.
As of today, the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization is no longer operational. Without an arbiter, non-compliance with the WTO could become the rule rather than the exception
The Appellate Body is the WTO’s Supreme Court. If member countries disagree over international trade, the Appellate Body has the final say, and can even authorise retaliatory countermeasures. Now the appellate body has ceased to function, what can we expect?
Other countries have proposed reforms to address the US’s concerns, aiming to clarify and narrow the Appellate Body’s mandate and increase the number of judges from seven part-time members to nine full-time members to increase its capacity to settle disputes quickly. However, various proposals have been rejected, and the WTO is still searching for a way forward. While the appointment of judges has received the most attention, the US’s imposition of a 95% cut in the Appellate Body’s budget is a major obstacle to progress.
While dispute settlement can continue at the WTO, matters which are not resolved at the consultations and panel stages will no longer be able to progress to appeal. This includes all of the disputes raised in 2018 and 2019 associated with the trade war.
