Courtesy of Mish.
Proving once again, not that any more proof was need, the World Trade Organization is nothing but a political organization of fiefdoms out to protect their own interests, not really do anything to foster trade.
Today, the US is accused of bullying the rest of the organization by refusing to accept the reappointment of a South Korean judge who the US fears may rule in favor of China in trade disputes.
The Financial Times reports US Accused of Undermining WTO.
The US has been accused of being a bully and undermining the World Trade Organisation’s dispute system after vetoing the reappointment of a South Korean judge. The EU and legal scholars have warned that the veto threatens the impartiality of the global trade court.
US opposition comes at a time when many believe Washington has been losing faith in the WTO and is preparing for a big fight with China over how and when economies can deploy anti-dumping defences against cheap imports.
The US told fellow WTO members last week that it could not support the reappointment of Seung Wha Chang, a respected South Korean expert in international trade law whose four-year term on the seven-member resident appellate body ends on Tuesday.
Washington cited the body’s decisions in three cases involving the US and one other as examples of what it said was a pattern of WTO panels overreaching and issuing “abstract” decisions.
The US intervention comes ahead of what is likely to be an important period for the appellate body. Among the issues it is expected to decide are whether China is entitled to “market economy” status within the WTO, an important designation that would help Beijing fight back against anti-dumping cases, such as those being mounted against Chinese steel imports on both sides of the Atlantic.
Beijing claims it should be awarded the status automatically in December, the 15th anniversary of the country joining the WTO. The US and some opponents in Europe insist that the text of China’s accession agreement is more ambiguous and that eventually the issue will have to be decided by the appellate body.
Greg Shaffer, an expert in WTO law at the University of California Irvine, said the US’s opposition to the reappointment of Mr Chang risked injecting politics into what ought to be a purely legal process.
It also, he said, was “making the US look like a bully, and not an upholder of rule of law principles”.
“The US response and example will have ripple effects around the world,” Prof Shaffer said. “Undermining the independence of the WTO appellate body will affect the entire rules-based system to resolve trade disputes.”
Stacked Deck
If the US can unilaterally stack the deck, what does that say about the organization?
It’s not just the US. The WTO is nothing but a collective group of fiefdoms each seeking to protect their interests first, then the interests of their region.
Meanwhile, not a damn thing is done about blatant US agricultural tariffs especially sugar. The Trans-Pacific trade agreement (not net passed) would not fix such problems.
It could actually be helpful if the WTO collapsed. What’s really needed is free trade, not “fair trade” where “fair” is 100% in the eyes of the beholder.
