REFORM BELLS FOR THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION (WTO)

The political leaders of 23 countries (12 developed and 11 developing countries), which came together in 1947, made history by drafting the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to promote free trade by reducing tariffs and non-tariff barriers (John and Wild, 2017). GATT is the agreement regulating the promotion of free trade by reducing tariffs and non-tariff barriers in international trade (John & Wild, 2017). With the revision of GATT in 1944, another important step was experienced. signatory countries further lowered tariffs on commodity trade and reduced state support for agricultural products (John & Wild, 2017). The revision of the agreement also clearly defined the concept of intellectual property rights. Thus, copyrights (computer programs, databases, sound recordings and films), brands and patents (trade secret and know-how) are protected (John & Wild, 2017). The most important thing missing in the first version of GATT; that it did not have the power to enforce world trade rules. Therefore, the most important success of the revision of GATT has been the establishment of the World Trade Organization. The WTO replaced GATT, but also adopted all the old GATT agreements. Therefore, GATT officially no longer exists.

As it is known, the World Trade Organization (WTO) is the international organization that determines the rules of international trade. The feature that distinguishes WTO from GATT is its ability to resolve disputes in trade. The way the WTO uses this power, the idea that it needs reform and that it needs to update itself on some issues has started to be voiced by many countries. Regarding the issue, British Minister of International Trade Liz Truss called for the WTO to update itself according to the day and to take steps on free and fair trade. Speaking at the G7 Trade Ministers Meeting held online, Minister Truss stated that it needed reforms in the World Trade Organization, "Instead of getting stuck in the 1990s, we need to reflect the world as it is now, especially in the areas of digital commerce, data, the environment and women's economic empowerment" (www.milliyet.com.tr). Stating that the World Trade Organization should be fair for all countries and the existing provisions need to be updated for the resolution of disputes, Truss stated that unfair industrial incentives should be eliminated and transparency should be ensured (www.milliyet.com.tr). Similarly, the EU Commission published its "Trade Policy Assessment" study, which includes its commercial strategies for the next 10 years and will support the recovery and transformation of the economy in line with green and digital targets (www.milliyet.com.tr). This work is based on a global perspective for sustainable and fair trade. It is known that this study includes updating global rules for sustainable and fair trade and for this, the EU Commission gives priority to WTO reform (www.milliyet.com.tr).

What steps the WTO will take upon these recent developments and demands has been a matter of curiosity. It will be useful to visit the sites in the bibliography for more detailed information on the subject.

References:

John J., Wild, K. L. (2017). Uluslararası İşletmecilik: Küreselleşmenin Zorlukları (8.Baskıdan Çeviri). (Çev. Arı G.S.). Ankara: Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık.

https://www.milliyet.com.tr/uzmanpara/abnin-ticaret-politikasi-dto-reformuna-odaklanacak-6434974

https://www.milliyet.com.tr/ekonomi/ingiltereden-dunya-ticaret-orgutunde-reform-cagrisi-6470500

Çağlar KARAKURT
Araştırma Görevlisi 
İstanbul Gelişim Üniversitesi
İktisadi, İdari ve Sosyal Bilimler Fakültesi 
Uluslararası Ticaret ve İşletmecilik Bölümü