The Role of World Trade Organization in Dispute Settlement

THE ROLE OF WHO IN DISPUTE SETTLEMENT
Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
University
State
City
Date
Introduction
Who is WTO?
WTO is the abbreviation for World Trade Organization, and it is the only international organization that deals with all the rules and regulations of trade between nations. At its core are two agreements which are negotiated as well as signed by the massive of the nation’s trading worldwide and are ratified in their respective governments (Baldwin 2006). Generally, the aim is to facilitate a smooth flow of trade and make it as predictable and freely as possible. WTO plays several roles as it acts as a platform for settling trade disputes, negotiating trade agreements between all of its members and it at the same time supports and assists the needs of the developing countries.
In more than two decades, the organization has assisted in reducing trade barriers to help nations trade in services and goods. Besides, the also created a conflict resolution system which the supporters claim to have reduced the threat that affects trade wars. However, this institution has been facing some considerable amount of pressure (Baldwin 2014). For instance, the members have resolved to turn to regional as well as bilateral free trade contracts to advance their trade needs and interests. Also, negotiations conducted on comprehensive trade development goals have raised some disagreements over the rights of intellectual property as well as agricultural subsidies (Baldwin 2005). Also, the U.S president has significantly criticized the WTO for what he perceives as its failure in dealing with China’s trade constraints and abuses on the United States sovereignty, and as a result, they put the future global trade rules in huge doubts. This paper aims at looking at the significance of the role of WTO in dealing with trade disputes and also if it has been put into doubt.
The Role of WTO
This organization has the responsibility of overseeing all the rules applicable to international trade. It facilitates and creates a conducive environment for trade negotiations among its 164 members (Baldwin 2016). The number of member nations has increased from 123 to 164 in 2018. Besides, the organization must monitor the expedition of those trade agreements, produce research on global trade as well as economic policy and it also acts as a platform for confronting and settling trade conflicts between nations.
The organization was established in 1995, and it is based in Geneva Switzerland. It succeeded the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which was an organization that was founded in 1948 and its rules made up the contemporary trading system. The decision-making process of WTO takes place at the Ministerial Conference which is usually held after two years (Busch 2003). Since the inaugural conference, there have been eleven conferences. Most of these conferences are made by consensus apart from few exceptions, meaning that all the decisions are binding and all the members must agree. Normally, the WTO rules are implemented by the member nations, and they also have the power to impose retaliatory trade sanctions on all the nations that contradict them.
Several founding principle...