world Trade organisation is a multilateral interstate organization that has been functioning since January 1, 1995. It arose as a successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) as a result of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations of 1986-1994, held under the auspices of the GATT. The Uruguay Round ended on 15 April 1994 with the Marrakesh Protocol (Final Act), which opened the Agreement Establishing the WTO for signature.
As of January 1, 2006, 150 states became members of the WTO. 30 states, including Russia, have observer status and are in the process of joining the WTO. The headquarters of the WTO is located in the city of Geneva, Switzerland (rue de Lausanne, 154, CH-1211). The WTO is not part of the UN system, but, having the status legal entity enjoys all the privileges of the UN special agencies. official languages- English, French and Spanish. WTO address on the Internet - www.wto.org
The budget of the Organization and the amount of contributions of individual member countries is based on traditional practice and the rules of GATT-1947 (a country's share in the WTO budget is equal to its share in international trade).
The agreement consists of a preamble, general form repeating the preamble of the GATT, 16 articles and four annexes containing the legal instruments of the WTO. The agreement provides for the creation of a single multilateral structure for the implementation of 56 legal documents that make up the legal system of the WTO. Article II of the Agreement establishes that the legal documents named in Annexes 1, 2, 3 are integral parts of the Agreement, their provisions create rights and obligations for all WTO members. Countries that have joined the WTO must accept them without any exceptions and exceptions and are obliged to bring their national legislation into line with the norms of these documents. Annex 4 contains the Agreement on Trade in Civil Aircraft and the Agreement on Government Procurement, which create obligations only for the countries of their signatories.
The functions of the WTO are defined in Article III of the Agreement as promoting the implementation and application of WTO legal instruments; organization of negotiations between its members on issues of multilateral trade relations; ensuring the functioning of the mechanism for the periodic review of the trade policy of WTO members and the implementation of the Agreement on the rules and procedures for resolving disputes.
At present, the newly acceding states, including Russia, are following the following path. Article XII of the Agreement states that any state or separate customs territory with full autonomy in the conduct of its foreign trade may accede to the WTO on terms to be agreed between that state and the WTO. The decision on accession is taken by the Ministerial Conference by a two-thirds vote of the WTO members. However, according to the tradition of the GATT, the decision is made by consensus.
The acceding country notifies the Director General of the WTO of its intention to join the WTO, submits the Memorandum on the foreign trade regime (goods and services) to the WTO. After that, the issue of accession conditions is considered by the Working Group, which is created by the WTO General Council. The working group studies the country's foreign trade regime, its legislation and practice. A significant part of the work in the Group is transferred to informal meetings and consultations, during which the conditions for the country's accession to the WTO are gradually worked out. At the same time, bilateral negotiations are underway on the issue of reducing trade barriers, which should result in a list of concessions and obligations of the acceding country in these areas. The outcome of the meetings of the Working Group is the report of the Group to the General Council (Conference) of the WTO, containing a summary of the discussion, the conclusions of the Working Group, as well as draft decisions of the General Council (Conference) of the WTO and the protocol on accession. The report of the Working Group, the decision and protocol on accession must be approved by the General Council (Conference) of the WTO. The decision on the accession of a country enters into force 30 days after its adoption by the acceding country.
The legal framework of the WTO is a multilateral agreement covering the scope of trade in goods, services and trade aspects of rights intellectual property. The legal framework of the WTO can be outlined by a list of documents attached to the Agreement, constituting its integral part and creating rights and obligations for the governments of the WTO member countries.
Applications 1, 2, and 3 include:
Multilateral Agreements on Trade in Goods - GATT-1994 together with understandings, decisions, and agreements interpreting and developing the articles of the GATT: (Understandings regarding the interpretation of articles II, XVII, XXIV, XXVIII); Agreement on the Application of Article VI (Anti-Dumping Code); Agreement on the Application of Article VII (Customs Value); agreements on subsidies and countervailing measures, on safeguard measures, on import licensing procedures, on rules of origin, on technical barriers to trade, on the application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures, on pre-shipment inspection, on agriculture, on textiles and clothing; Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures – TRIMs Agreement;
General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS);
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights - TRIPS Agreement;
Mutual understanding regarding the rules and procedures for resolving disputes;
Trade Policy Review Mechanism.
The legal documents of the WTO also include 23 declarations and ministerial decisions related to the above documents, and an agreement on commitments in the field of financial services. Integral part The legal documents of the WTO are the national protocols on access to markets for goods and services, which emerged as a result of the Uruguay Round, and which fix the tariff conditions for access to the markets of individual countries, as well as obligations for access to the services markets. Multilateral agreements included in the WTO contain legal norms that governments should be guided by in mutual trade in goods and services. As such, they replace more than 30,000 bilateral agreements and form the legal basis for modern international trade. Their main principles are most favored nation treatment, national treatment and transparency in the use of regulatory measures.
The organizational structure of the WTO was formed on the basis of the development of the principles laid down in the GATT and improved for about 50 years. Article XVI of the Agreement says that the WTO should be guided by the decisions, procedures and common practices followed by contracting parties and GATT bodies. However, the Agreement notes that the GATT, which entered the WTO (GATT-1994), is different from the GATT dated September 30, 1947 (GATT-1947) in terms of law. The main body of the WTO is the Ministerial Conference, which meets once every two years. This Conference has all the rights of the WTO, can carry out all its functions and make decisions. Between conferences, its functions are performed by the General Council. The Council may act as a Dispute Settlement Body and a Trade Policy Review Body. In these cases, the Council has separate chairmen and its own legal procedures. In addition, there is a Council for Trade in Goods to oversee the implementation of multilateral agreements on trade in goods, a Council for Trade in Services to oversee the implementation of the GATS, and an Intellectual Property Board to oversee the operation of the agreement. Trade and development committees have also been set up; on budgetary, financial and administrative matters. In addition, WTO bodies regularly have committees formed under the aforementioned individual multilateral agreements. There is a WTO Secretariat headed by the Director General, who is given the authority to appoint other members of the Secretariat and determine their terms of reference and functions. Currently total strength Secretariat staff exceeds 600 people. Within the framework of the WTO, the system of decision-making by consensus adopted in GATT-1947 continues to operate. In cases where consensus cannot be reached, the decision may be taken by a vote, with each WTO member country having one vote. However, the voting system in the WTO is used extremely rarely. Articles IX and X of the Agreement determine the procedural aspects of voting.
The agreement provides for various ways of accession to the WTO. In accordance with the Final Act of the Uruguay Round, the acceding countries were divided into several groups. GATT members became members of the WTO by accepting the Agreement, multilateral trade agreements, as well as the General Agreement on Trade in Services and the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. In order to become members of the WTO, non-GATT Uruguay Round countries had to complete GATT 1947 accession negotiations, provide a list of their GATT tariff concessions and specific GATS commitments. Approximately in the same position were developing countries that accepted the provisions of the GATT on the so-called factual basis. These conditions were met by 132 states that formed the WTO. They received the name of the original members of the WTO. At present, any state joins on the basis of Article XII of the Agreement.
World Trade Organization (WTO) -political relations of member states. The WTO was formed on the basis of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), concluded in 1947 and for almost 50 years actually performed the functions of an international organization, but was, nevertheless, not an international organization in the legal sense.
The WTO is responsible for introducing new details, and also monitors compliance by the members of the organization with all agreements signed by most countries of the world and ratified by their parliaments. The WTO builds its activities on the basis of decisions taken in 1986-1994. under the Uruguay Round and earlier GATT arrangements.
Discussing problems and making decisions on global issues liberalization and prospects for further development of world trade are held within the framework of multilateral trade negotiations (rounds). To date, 8 rounds of such negotiations have been held, including the Uruguay one, and in 2001 the ninth one started in Doha, Qatar. The Organization is trying to complete negotiations on the Doha Round, which was launched with a clear focus on meeting the needs of developing countries.
The World Trade Organization (WTO), established in 1995, has replaced the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) as the sole international body dealing with the global rules of trade between states. It is not a specialized agency, but it has mechanisms and practices for cooperation with the United Nations.
The tasks of the WTO are to help streamline the process of trade within a system based on certain rules; objective settlement of trade disputes between governments; organization of trade negotiations. These activities are based on 60 WTO agreements - the main legal norms of the policy of international commerce and trade.
The principles on which these agreements are based include non-discrimination (most favored nation and national treatment provisions), freer trade conditions, promotion of competition and additional provisions for the least developed countries. One of the goals of the WTO is to combat protectionism. The task of the WTO is not proclaimed to achieve any goals or results, but to establish the general principles of international trade.
According to the declaration, the work of the WTO, like the GATT before it, is based on basic principles, including:
Equal rights. All WTO members are required to provide all other members with most favored nation trade (MFN) treatment. The MFN principle means that preferences granted to one of the WTO members automatically apply to all other members of the organization in any case.
Reciprocity. All concessions in easing bilateral trade restrictions should be mutual, eliminating the free rider problem.
Transparency. WTO members should publish their trade rules in full and have authorities responsible for providing information to other WTO members.
Creating Operating Commitments. Commitments on trade tariffs of countries are governed mainly by WTO bodies, and not by the relationship between countries. And in the event of a deterioration in the terms of trade in any country in a particular sector, the disadvantaged party can demand compensation in other sectors.
Safety valves. In some cases, the government is able to impose trade restrictions. The WTO agreement allows members to take action not only to protect environment but also to support public health, animal and plant health.
There are three types of activities in this direction:
Articles allowing trade measures to be used to achieve non-economic goals;
Articles aimed at ensuring "fair competition";. Members must not use environmental protection measures as a means of masking protectionist policies;
Provisions allowing intervention in trade for economic reasons.
Exceptions to the MFN principle also include developing and least developed countries that have preferential treatment in the WTO, regional free trade areas and customs unions.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) was created as a result of many years of negotiations within the framework of the Uruguay Round, which ended in December 1993.
The WTO was formally formed at the Marrakech Conference in April 1994 by the Agreement Establishing the WTO, also known as the Marrakesh Agreement.
In addition to the main text, the document contains 4 appendices:
Appendix 1A:
Multilateral agreements on trade in goods:
The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade of 1994, which defines the basis for the regime of trade in goods, the rights and obligations of WTO members in this area.
The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade of 1947, which defines the basis for the regime of trade in goods, the rights and obligations of WTO members in this area.
The Agreement on Agriculture, which defines the specifics of the regulation of trade in agricultural products and the mechanisms for applying measures of state support for production and trade in this sector.
Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, which defines the specifics of the regulation of trade in textiles and clothing.
Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Norms, which defines the conditions for the application of sanitary and phytosanitary control measures.
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, which defines the conditions for the application of standards, technical regulations, certification procedures.
Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures, which prohibits the use of a limited range of trade policy measures that may affect foreign investment and be qualified as contrary to GATT Article III (National Treatment) and Article XI (Prohibition of Quantitative Restrictions).
Agreement on the Application of Article VII of GATT 1994 (Customs Valuation of Goods), which defines the rules for assessing the customs value of goods.
A pre-shipment inspection agreement that defines the conditions for conducting pre-shipment inspections.
Rules of Origin Agreement, which defines rules of origin as a set of laws, regulations and rules for determining the country of origin of goods.
Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures, which establishes procedures and forms for import licensing.
Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, which defines the conditions and procedures for the application of subsidies and measures aimed at combating subsidies.
Agreement on the application of Article VI of GATT 1994 (anti-dumping), which defines the conditions and procedures for the application of measures to counter dumping.
The safeguards agreement, which defines the conditions and procedures for the application of measures to counter growing imports.
Appendix 1B:
The General Agreement on Trade in Services, which defines the basis of the regime for trade in services, the rights and obligations of WTO members in this area.
Application 1C:
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, which defines the rights and obligations of WTO members in the field of intellectual property protection.
Application 2:
Understanding regarding the rules and procedures for dispute resolution, which establishes the conditions and procedures for resolving disputes between members of the WTO in connection with their fulfillment of obligations under all WTO agreements.
Appendix 3:
The Trade Policy Review Mechanism, which defines the terms and conditions for trade policy reviews of WTO members.
Application 4:
Non-binding multilateral trade agreements for all WTO members:
Agreement on trade in civil aircraft, which defines the obligations of the parties to liberalize trade in this sector.
Agreement on Government Procurement, which establishes procedures for the admission of foreign companies to national public procurement systems.
The headquarters of the WTO is located in Geneva, Switzerland.
Organizational structure of the WTO.
The official supreme body of the organization is the Ministerial Conference of the WTO, which meets at least once every two years. During the existence of the WTO, eight such conferences were held, almost each of which was accompanied by active protests from the opponents of globalization.
The Ministerial Conference is the highest body of the WTO, consisting of representatives of member states. Meetings of the Ministerial Conference are held in accordance with Article 4 of the "Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization" dated April 15, 1994, once every two years or more often.
To date, 9 conferences have been held:
1. First conference - Singapore (December 1996). 4 working groups were created - on the transparency of the state. procurement; promotion of trade (customs issues), trade and investment; trade and competition. These groups are also known as Singapore issues;
2. Second conference - Geneva (May 1998);
3. Third conference - Seattle (November 1999). A week before the start of the conference, there was no agreement on the list of issues to be discussed, and the growing disagreements between developed and developing countries (agriculture) were also evident. The conference was supposed to be the start of a new round of negotiations, but plans were thwarted by poor organization and street protests. Negotiations broke down and moved to Doha (2001);
4. Fourth Conference - Doha (November 2001). China's accession to the WTO was approved;
5. Fifth conference - Cancun (September 2003). 20 developing countries, led by China, India and Brazil, opposed the demand of developed countries to accept "Singapore issues" and urged them to stop subsidizing national agricultural producers (primarily in the EU and the USA). Negotiations did not lead to success;
6. Sixth Conference - Hong Kong (December 2005). The conference was marked by numerous protests by South Korean farmers. The conference was supposed to complete the Doha round on agricultural subsidies by 2006 Conference agenda: Further reduction of customs duties; Demand to stop direct subsidizing of agriculture; Separate requirement for the EU regarding the ESHP; Singapore issues - a requirement for developed countries to introduce more transparent legislation in the field of investment, competition, government. procurement and trade facilitation;
7. Seventh Conference - Geneva (November 2009). At this conference, ministers took a retrospective review of the work done by the WTO. According to the schedule, the conference did not negotiate the Doha Round of negotiations;
8. Eighth Conference - Geneva (December 2011). In parallel to the plenary session, three working sessions were held on "The Importance of the Multilateral Trading System and the WTO", "Trade and Development" and "The Doha Development Agenda". The conference approved the accession of Russia, Samoa and Montenegro;
9. Ninth conference - Bali (December 2013). Yemen's accession approved.
The organization is headed CEO with the corresponding secretariat subordinate to it. Subordinate to the Council is a special commission on trade policy of the participating countries, designed to monitor their compliance with their obligations under the WTO. In addition to general executive functions, the General Council manages several other commissions created on the basis of agreements concluded under the WTO.
The most important of these are: the Council on Commodity Trade (so-called GATT Council), the Council on Trade in Services and the Council on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. In addition, there are many other committees and working groups subordinate to the General Council, designed to provide the highest bodies of the WTO with information on developing countries, budgetary policy, financial and budgetary issues, etc.
In accordance with the adopted “Agreement on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes” arising between WTO member states, disputes are settled by the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB). This quasi-judicial institution is designed to impartially and effectively resolve conflicts between the parties. De facto, its functions are performed by the WTO General Council, which makes decisions on the basis of reports of arbitration panels dealing with a particular dispute. Over the years since the founding of the WTO, the DSB has been forced many times to resolve complex, often quite politicized trade problems between influential WTO member states. Many decisions of the DSB over the past years are perceived ambiguously.
The WTO has 159 members, including: 155 internationally recognized UN member states, 1 partially recognized state - the Republic of China (Taiwan), 2 dependent territories - Hong Kong and Macau, as well as European Union(EU). To join the WTO, a state must submit a memorandum through which the WTO reviews the trade and economic policy of the organization concerned.
Member States of the World Trade Organization: Australia, Austria, Albania, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Bangladesh, Barbados, Bahrain, Belize, Belgium, Benin, Bulgaria, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burundi , Vanuatu, UK, Hungary, Venezuela, Vietnam, Gabon, Haiti, Guyana, Gambia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Germany, Honduras, Hong Kong, Grenada, Greece, Georgia, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, DRC, European Community, Egypt, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Israel, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Ireland, Iceland, Spain, Italy, Cape Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Qatar, Kenya, Cyprus, Kyrgyzstan, China, Colombia, Congo , Republic of Korea, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Kuwait, Latvia, Lesotho, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Mauritania, Madagascar, Macau, Republic of Macedonia, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Maldives, Malta, Morocco , Mexico, Mozambique, Moldova, Mongolia, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Netherlands, Nicaragua, New Zealand, Norway, UAE, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Rwanda, Romania, El Salvador, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Swaziland, Senegal, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Suriname, USA, Sierra Leone, Thailand, Taiwan, Tanzania, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay, Fiji, Philippines, Finland, France, Croatia, CAR, Chad, Montenegro, Czech Republic, Chile, Switzerland, Sweden, Sri Lanka, Ecuador, Estonia, South Africa, Jamaica, Japan.
Observers at the WTO are: Afghanistan, Algeria, Andorra, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Belarus, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Vatican City, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Comoros, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Sudan, Syria, Uzbekistan, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia.
Countries that are neither members nor observers at the WTO: Abkhazia, Anguilla, Aruba, East Timor, Jersey, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Western Sahara, Cayman Islands, Kiribati, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kosovo, Cook Islands, Curaçao, Monaco, Montserrat, Nauru, Niue, Palau, San Marino, Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan-da -Kunya, Sint Maarten, Somalia, Tokelau, Turks and Caicos, Tuvalu, Turkmenistan, Federated States of Micronesia, Eritrea, South Ossetia, South Sudan.
The heads of the WTO were:
Robert Azeved, since 2013
Pascal Lamy, 2005-2013
Supachai Panitchpakdi, 2002-2005
Mike Moore 1999-2002
Renato Ruggiero, 1995-1999
Peter Sutherland, 1995
The heads of the WTO's predecessor, GATT, were:
Peter Sutherland, 1993-1995
Arthur Dunkel, 1980-1993
Oliver Long, 1968-1980
Eric Wyndham White, 1948-1968
World Trade Organization (WTO - English World Trade Organization (WTO))- an organization established in 1995 with the aim of establishing international trade and establishing the regulation of trade and political relations between member states. The WTO began its activities as the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), concluded in 1947.
The World Trade Organization WTO is a community of countries that recognize its Charter and adhere to the main agreements governing foreign trade. Currently, the WTO is not a UN body and has mechanisms for resolving trade issues between member states.
The headquarters of the WTO is located in Geneva, Switzerland. The organization includes both developed and developing countries from all continents. Initially, 77 countries were members of the World Trade Organization. On the this moment it has 162 members (158 internationally recognized states, Taiwan, 2 dependent territories and the European Union).
What are the tasks of the WTO?
The tasks of the WTO include:
- control over the implementation of agreements and agreements of the package of documents of the Uruguay Round;
- conducting multilateral trade negotiations between interested member countries;
- resolution of trade disputes;
- monitoring the national trade policy of member countries;
- cooperation with international specialized organizations.
WTO rules regulate only trade and economic issues. In general, the WTO promotes the ideas of free trade, seeking to remove any protectionist barriers.
What gives the country accession to the WTO?
The main benefits of WTO membership are:
- assistance in creating favorable conditions in the international trade market in the form of developing stable, strong trade relations between the participating countries (including assistance in creating favorable conditions in foreign economic policy);
- elimination of all discrimination, protection of interests, both national and common among WTO member countries, if they are infringed by other partner countries;
- assistance in the implementation of the plans, the emergence of new trade and economic interests.
All countries that have joined the World Trade Organization undertake to comply with the terms of agreements, legal documents, which are united under the single term "Multilateral Trade Agreement" (MTS). In other words, the organization provides a package of agreements (contracts), rules, certain norms that govern all world trade.
From international organizations Observer status received: the World Bank, the UN and the IMF.
Is Russia a member of the WTO?
Negotiations on Russia's accession to the WTO lasted 18 years. Since August 22, 2012, she has become a full member of the organization of the Russian Federation. The most difficult were the negotiations with the US and the European Union. In particular, for a long time it was not possible to resolve issues with Washington on access to the Russian market of American pork and on the protection of intellectual property rights, with the EU - on export duties on timber, on agriculture, on the conditions for the industrial assembly of cars on the territory of the Russian Federation.
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The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organization created to liberalize international trade and regulate trade and political relations of member states. The WTO is the legal successor of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which has been in force since 1947.
The goals of the WTO are the liberalization of world trade through its regulation mainly by tariff methods with a consistent reduction in the level of import duties, as well as the elimination of various non-tariff barriers and quantitative restrictions.
The functions of the WTO are to monitor the implementation of trade agreements concluded between WTO members, organize and ensure trade negotiations among WTO members, monitor the trade policy of WTO members, and resolve trade disputes between members of the organization.
The fundamental principles and rules of the WTO are:
Mutual granting of the most favored nation treatment (MFN) in trade;
Mutual granting of national treatment (NR) to goods and services of foreign origin;
Regulation of trade mainly by tariff methods;
Refusal to use quantitative and other restrictions;
Trade policy transparency;
Resolution of trade disputes through consultations and negotiations, etc.
WTO members, as of May 2012, are 155 states. In 2007, Vietnam, the Kingdom of Tonga and Cape Verde joined the organization; in 2008 - Ukraine. In April and May 2012, Montenegro and Samoa became WTO members, respectively.
More than 30 states and more than 60 international organizations, including the UN, the IMF and the World Bank, have observer status in the WTO.
Among the observer countries are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Serbia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and others.
The vast majority of observer countries are at various stages of accession to the WTO.
The WTO accession procedure consists of several stages. This process takes an average of 5-7 years.
At the first stage, within the framework of special Working Groups, a detailed consideration at the multilateral level of the economic mechanism and the trade and political regime of the acceding country is carried out for their compliance with the norms and rules of the WTO. After that, consultations and negotiations begin on the conditions for the applicant country's membership in this organization. These consultations and negotiations, as a rule, are held at the bilateral level with all interested member countries of the Working Group.
First of all, the negotiations concern the "commercially significant" concessions that the acceding country will be willing to give to WTO members for access to its markets.
In turn, the acceding country, as a rule, receives the rights that all other WTO members have, which will practically mean the end of its discrimination in foreign markets.
In accordance with the established procedure, the results of all negotiations on the liberalization of market access and the terms of accession are formalized in the following official documents:
Report of the Working Group, which sets out the entire package of rights and obligations that the applicant country will assume as a result of the negotiations;
List of obligations on tariff concessions in the field of goods and on the level of support for agriculture;
List of Specific Service Obligations and List of MFN (Most Favored Nation) Exemptions;
Accession Protocol, legally formalizing the agreements reached at the bilateral and multilateral levels.
One of the main conditions for the accession of new countries to the WTO is to bring their national legislation and practice of regulating foreign economic activity in line with the provisions of the package of agreements of the Uruguay Round.
At the final stage of accession, the national legislative body of the candidate country ratifies the entire package of documents agreed within the framework of the Working Group and approved by the General Council. After that, these obligations become part of the legal package of WTO documents and national legislation, and the candidate country itself receives the status of a WTO member.
The supreme governing body of the WTO is the Ministerial Conference. Convened at least once every two years, as a rule, at the level of ministers of trade or foreign affairs. The conference elects the head of the WTO.
The current management of the organization and monitoring of the implementation of the adopted agreements is carried out by the General Council. Its functions also include resolving trade disputes between WTO member countries and monitoring their trade policies. The General Council controls the activities of the Council for Trade in Goods, the Council for Trade in Services, and the Council for Intellectual Property.
Members of the General Council are ambassadors or heads of missions of WTO member countries.
The executive body of the organization is the WTO Secretariat.
The WTO has working and expert groups and specialized committees whose functions include establishing and monitoring compliance with competition rules, monitoring the operation of regional trade agreements and the investment climate in member countries, and admitting new members.
The WTO practices decision-making on the basis of consensus, although de jure voting is provided. Interpretation of the provisions of agreements on goods, services, as well as exemption from obligations assumed are accepted by 3/4 of the votes. Amendments that do not affect the rights and obligations of participants, as well as the admission of new members, require a 2/3 vote (in practice, as a rule, by consensus).
The working languages of the WTO are English, French and Spanish.
WTO Director General since September 1, 2005 - Pascal Lamy.
The headquarters of the organization is located in Geneva.
The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources
The WTO has been operating since January 1, 1995, the decision to establish it was made at the end of many years of negotiations within the framework of the Uruguay Round of GATT, which ended in December 1993. The WTO was officially formed at a conference in Marrakesh in April 1994, therefore the Agreement Establishing the WTO is also called the Marrakesh Agreement.
While the GATT dealt only with trade in goods, the scope of the WTO is wider: in addition to trade in goods, it also regulates trade in services and trade aspects of intellectual property rights. The WTO has the legal status of a specialized agency of the UN system.
Initially, 77 states joined the WTO, but by the middle of 2003, 146 countries - developed, developing and post-socialist - were its members. The "motley" composition of the WTO member states is reflected in the emblem of this organization itself.
Some ex-Soviet countries also joined the WTO: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan. An important event was the accession to the WTO in December 2001 of China, which is considered one of the most promising participants in world trade. The WTO member countries account for approximately 95% of world trade - in fact, almost the entire world market without Russia. A number of countries have officially expressed their desire to join this organization and have the status of observer states. In 2003 there were 29 such countries, including the Russian Federation and some other post-Soviet states (Ukraine, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan).
Tasks of the WTO.
The main task of the WTO is to promote unhindered international trade. The developed countries, on whose initiative the WTO was created, believe that it is economic freedom in international trade that contributes to economic growth and improving the economic well-being of people.
It is currently believed that the world trading system should comply with the following five principles.
one). No discrimination in trade.
No state should infringe on any other country by imposing restrictions on the export and import of goods. Ideally, in the domestic market of any country there should be no difference in terms of sale between foreign products and domestic products.
2). Lower trade (protectionist) barriers.
Trade barriers are called factors that reduce the possibility of penetration of foreign goods into the domestic market of any country. These include, first of all, customs duties and import quotas (quantitative restrictions on imports). International trade is also affected by administrative barriers and exchange rate policies.
3). Stability and predictability of the terms of trade.
Foreign companies, investors and governments need to be sure that trade conditions (tariff and non-tariff barriers) will not be changed suddenly and arbitrarily.
4). Stimulation of competitiveness in international trade.
For equal competition of firms different countries it is necessary to stop "unfair" methods of competition - such as export subsidies (state assistance to exporting firms), the use of dumping (deliberately low) prices to capture new markets.
5). Benefits in international trade for less developed countries.
This principle partly contradicts the previous ones, but it is necessary for being drawn into world economy underdeveloped countries of the periphery, which obviously cannot at first compete with developed countries on an equal footing. Therefore, it is considered "fair" to grant special privileges to underdeveloped countries.
In general, the WTO promotes the ideas of free trade (free trade), fighting for the removal of protectionist barriers.
Practical principles of the WTO.
The activities of the WTO are based on three international agreements signed by the majority of states actively participating in world economic relations: the General Agreement on Trade in Goods (GATT) as amended in 1994, the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) . The main purpose of these agreements is to provide assistance to firms of all countries involved in export-import operations.
Implementation of WTO agreements, as a rule, brings not only long-term benefits, but also short-term difficulties. For example, lowering protectionist customs tariffs makes it easier for buyers to buy cheaper foreign goods, but can bankrupt domestic producers if they produce high-cost goods. Therefore, according to the rules of the WTO, member states are allowed to carry out the envisaged changes not instantly, but in stages, according to the principle of "progressive liberalization". At the same time, developing states usually have a longer period for the full implementation of their obligations.
Commitment to comply with free trade rules , assumed by all members of the WTO constitute the "multilateral trading" system. Most of the world's states, including all major importing and exporting countries, are members of this system. However, a number of states are not included in it, therefore the system is called "multilateral" (and not "worldwide"). In the long term, as the number of WTO members increases, the "multilateral trading" system should turn into a truly "world trade".
The main functions of the WTO:
– control over the fulfillment of the requirements of the basic WTO agreements;
– creating conditions for negotiations between WTO member countries on foreign economic relations;
– Settlement of disputes between states on issues of foreign economic trade policy;
– control over the policy of the WTO member states in the field of international trade;
- assistance to developing countries;
– cooperation with other international organizations.
Since the texts of agreements are drawn up and signed by a large number of countries participating in foreign trade relations, they often cause debate and controversy. Often the parties involved in negotiations pursue a variety of goals. In addition, agreements and contracts (including those concluded after lengthy WTO-brokered negotiations) often require further interpretation. Therefore, one of the main tasks of the WTO is precisely to serve as a kind of mediator in trade negotiations, to promote the settlement of disputes.
The practice of international economic conflicts has shown that controversial issues are best resolved in the manner established by the WTO, based on a mutually agreed legal framework and providing equal rights and opportunities to the parties. It is for this purpose that the texts of agreements signed within the framework of the WTO must include a clause on the rules for settling disputes. According to the text of the agreement on dispute settlement rules and procedures, “the WTO dispute settlement system is a key element in ensuring the security and predictability of the global trading system.”
WTO Members undertake not to take unilateral action against potential trade violations. Moreover, they undertake to resolve disputes within the framework of the multilateral dispute settlement system and abide by its rules and decisions. Decisions on controversial issues are taken by all member states, usually by consensus, which is an additional incentive to strengthen agreement in the ranks of the WTO.
Organizational structure of the WTO.
WTO governing bodies have three hierarchical levels (Fig. 1).
Strategic decisions at the highest level in the WTO are made by the Ministerial Conference, which meets at least once every two years.
Subordinate to the Ministerial Conference is the General Council, which is responsible for the implementation of current work and meets several times a year at the headquarters in Geneva, consisting of representatives of WTO member countries (usually ambassadors and heads of delegations of member countries). The General Council has two special bodies - for the analysis of trade policy and for the resolution of disputes. In addition, special committees are accountable to the General Council: on trade and development; on trade balance restrictions; budget, finance and administration.
The WTO General Council acts as a dispute resolution body to resolve conflicts arising from the implementation of the underlying agreements. It has exclusive authority to set up panels to deal with specific disputes, to approve the reports submitted by such panels as well as the appellate body, to monitor the implementation of decisions and recommendations, and to authorize retaliatory action in the event of non-compliance with recommendations.
The General Council partially delegates its functions to the three councils at the next level of the WTO hierarchy - the Council for Trade in Goods, the Council for Trade in Services and the Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.
The Council for Trade in Goods, in turn, manages the activities of specialized committees that monitor compliance with the principles of the WTO and the implementation of the GATT-1994 agreements in the field of trade in goods.
The Council for Trade in Services oversees the implementation of the GATS agreement. It includes the Financial Services Trading Committee and the Professional Services Working Group.
The Council on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, in addition to monitoring the implementation of the TRIPS Agreement, also deals with issues related to the international trade in counterfeit goods.
The WTO Secretariat, which is based in Geneva, has about 500 full-time employees; it is headed by the Director General of the WTO (since 2002 - Supachai Panitchpakdi). The WTO Secretariat, unlike similar bodies of other international organizations, does not make independent decisions, since this function is assigned to the member countries themselves. The main responsibilities of the Secretariat are to provide technical support to the various WTO councils and committees, as well as the Ministerial Conference, provide technical assistance to developing countries, analyze world trade and explain WTO provisions to the public and the media. mass media. The Secretariat also provides some form of legal assistance in the dispute resolution process and advises governments of countries wishing to become members of the WTO.
Contradictions between WTO member countries.
Although the WTO Charter declares the equality of all member countries, within this organization there are strong objective contradictions between developed and developing countries.
Developing countries have cheap but not very skilled labor. Therefore, the states of the "third world" can mainly import traditional goods - primarily textiles and clothing, agricultural products. Developed countries, protecting their textile and agribusiness industries, restrict imports from developing countries by imposing high customs duties on imported goods. They usually justify their protectionist measures by saying that developing countries are using dumping policies. In turn, developed countries lead the markets for high-tech goods, and now developing countries use protectionist measures against them.
Thus, almost all countries resort to protectionist protection to one degree or another. Therefore, the mutual reduction of protectionist barriers becomes a rather difficult process.
The liberalization of world trade is also hampered by the fact that developed and developing countries differ greatly in economic strength. Therefore, the countries of the "poor South" constantly (and not without reason) suspect the countries of the "rich North" that they want to impose on them a system of world economic relations that is more beneficial to developed than to developing countries. In turn, the developed countries rightly point out that many states openly speculate on their underdevelopment, seeking instead of economic modernization to beg for concessions and benefits in international trade relations.
The asymmetry of relations between developed and developing countries is most clearly seen in the issue of protection intellectual rights property. It is, first of all, about the fight against counterfeiting - mainly in the countries of the "third world" - trademarks of well-known companies in developed countries. Naturally, the countries of the “rich North” are much more interested in this struggle than the states of the “poor South”.
The liberalization of world trade is still objectively beneficial for both developed and developing countries. It is known, for example, that the accession of developing countries to the WTO sharply increases the flow of foreign investment into them. Therefore, WTO member countries seek and find compromise solutions to difficult problems.
The WTO development strategy was the gradual attraction of more and more countries to it, but at the same time, the less developed the country's economy is, the longer the period is given to it for the full implementation of the principles of free trade.
Benefits for new member countries are clearly visible, primarily in the level of tariffs on imported goods. If we compare middle level tariffs of WTO member countries (Table 1) with the conditions under which some countries entered the WTO (Table 2), then a noticeably privileged position of new members. They are often allowed to apply higher import tariffs than the WTO average; besides, they introduce these tariffs after a multi-year transitional period. Thus, new members of the WTO can immediately benefit from lower duties on exporting their goods abroad, and the difficulties from reducing protectionist protection are mitigated.
| Table 2. IMPORT TARIFF REQUIREMENTS FOR SOME WTO ACCESSION COUNTRIES | |||
| The country | Year of WTO accession | Tariffs on agricultural goods | Tariffs for other goods |
| Ecuador | 1996 | 25.8%, transition period 5 years, application of special protective measures for some goods | 20,1% |
| Panama | 1997 | 26.1%, transition period up to 14 years, application of special protective measures for some goods | 11.5%, transition period up to 14 years |
| Latvia | 1999 | 33.6%; transition period 9 years | 9.3%, transition period 9 years |
| Estonia | 1999 | 17.7%, transition period 5 years | 6.6%, transition period 6 years |
| Jordan | 2000 | 25%, transition period 10 years | |
| Oman | 2000 | 30.5%, transition period 4 years | 11%, transition period 4 years |
| Lithuania | 2001 | mostly 15 to 35% (maximum 50%), transitional period 8 years | mostly 10 to 20% (maximum 30%), transitional period 4 years |
| Compiled according to the website of Russia and the WTO: www.wto.ru | |||
Fighting against restrictions imposed in developed countries on imports from the "third world", developing countries resort to WTO arbitration and achieve the abolition of "anti-dumping" measures. So, in the first years of the 21st century. India has applied to the WTO to protest against the US and EU, which imposed restrictions on the import of fabrics and clothing made in India; after lengthy proceedings, the WTO ordered the defendants to cancel the protectionist measures. However, conflicts of this kind often arise not only between developed and developing countries, but also between different developing countries. For example, in the second half of 2001, India initiated 51 anti-dumping proceedings at the WTO, of which 9 against China, 7 against Singapore, and 3 against Thailand.
Russia and WTO.
Since the Russian economy is becoming more and more integrated into world trade, there is a need for our country to get involved in the work of international economic organizations. Even in the years of the existence of the USSR, contacts were established with the GATT. Since 1995, negotiations have been underway on Russia's accession to the WTO.
By joining the WTO, Russia will be able to use this entire mechanism to protect its foreign trade interests. The need for it Russian entrepreneurs grew when, in response to a serious increase in the openness of its domestic market, Russia did not see the response of Western countries. Instead, it has, on the contrary, faced trade barriers precisely in those goods where Russia has a comparative advantage in international trade, and unfair competition from a number of foreign firms in foreign markets, as well as in Russia's domestic market.
Russia's accession to the WTO can contribute to strengthening the stability, predictability and openness of the country's foreign trade regime, the shortcomings of which one hears complaints not only from foreign trade partners Russian Federation, but also exporters and importers in Russia itself.
By joining the WTO, Russia will have to take on a number of obligations contained in the WTO agreements. Together with the obligations, Russia will also receive rights that will allow it to better protect its foreign trade interests and accelerate its integration into the world economy.
The main prerequisite for successfully overcoming the difficulties in the field of transforming legislation and using its advantages within the framework of the WTO is the effective continuation of the process of improving legislation within the framework of liberal economic reforms, because this process almost completely coincides with the adaptation of legislation to the norms and rules of the WTO. First of all, we are talking about eliminating excessive administrative pressure on enterprises and increasing the degree of transparency of all legislation.
From liberalization and unification Russian system state regulation the following benefits are expected:
– simplification and rationalization of procedures for confirming the conformity of manufactured products international standards, and hence - the acceleration of the turnover of funds;
– increasing the competitiveness of products of Russian firms due to a more flexible system technical requirements and harmonization of national and international requirements;
– increasing the investment attractiveness of the Russian economy;
– cost reduction and elimination of duplication in oversight and compliance monitoring;
– reducing the number of documents and increasing the transparency of the regulatory system.
But the liberalization of foreign economic relations will inevitably lead to significant negative consequences. This process will affect all spheres of the country's life - political, social, industrial, financial and economic.
In the realm of politics, accepting the obligations imposed by agreements with WTO member countries will lead to an inevitable weakening of national sovereignty. The restrictions will affect all branches of government - the executive (it will constantly be required to fulfill international obligations, even to the detriment of national interests), the legislative (regulatory acts will have to be brought into line with the requirements of the WTO), the judiciary (legal disputes for possible violations will be considered in international courts) .
In area social relations accession to the WTO is also fraught with negative consequences: many enterprises, and possibly entire industries, will not be able to compete with the influx of foreign goods and services. It is not yet clear what the scale of job cuts could be, but it is likely that we will be talking about hundreds of thousands of unemployed (primarily in the light and food industries). This will require large expenditures for social support, retraining, creation of new jobs, etc. This requires huge funds, which, however, can be partially obtained from partners in the WTO.
Since Russian producers will have to compete with foreign producers both in the foreign and domestic markets for all product groups in very tough conditions, the crisis in the economic sphere itself can develop in two main directions.
On the one hand, foreign firms will certainly be presented - and, on quite legal grounds - claims about dumping allegedly used by Russian exporters. The fact is that the cost structure of our competitive goods is very different from the world one (primarily due to savings on wages, energy and ecology). Therefore, Russia will be required, for example, to raise domestic energy prices, bringing them in line with world prices.
On the other hand, competition with cheaper and higher-quality goods from foreign firms will sharply increase in the domestic market. According to some expert estimates, only 25% of domestic enterprises will be able to compete in the domestic market with foreign manufacturers. When Russia joins the WTO, the following industries will suffer: Agriculture, light industry, agricultural machinery and the automotive industry, in particular the production of trucks. For the rest, lowering customs barriers is unprofitable, since it can lead to ruin. Therefore, as a condition for joining the WTO, Russia insists on maintaining high customs duties to protect the domestic market from subsidized products from Europe, Asia and other countries.
In this regard, so-called adaptation measures are envisaged, in particular, it is planned to adopt a law on extending the exemption of agricultural enterprises from income tax until 2016 and minimizing VAT.
Since the immediate and full fulfillment of the conditions for joining the WTO seems impossible for Russia, there have been sharp disputes in our country about the advisability of this entry.
In June 2012, deputies from opposition parties submitted a request to the Constitutional Court to check for compliance with the Basic Law of the Russian Federation international treaty on Russia's accession to the WTO. On July 9, 2012, the Constitutional Court recognized that the agreements with the WTO are legal.
The Russian economy will inevitably suffer major losses after joining the WTO.
Dmitry Preobrazhensky, Yuri Latov
Literature:
Afontsev S . Accession to the WTO: economic and political perspectives.– Pro et contra. T. 7., 2002
Gorban M., Guriev S., Yudaeva K. Russia in the WTO: myths and reality. - Issues of economics. 2002, No. 2
Maksimova M. Accession to the WTO: win or lose?- Man and work. 2002, No. 4
Dumoulin I.I. world Trade organisation. M., CJSC Publishing house "Economics", 2002, 2003
Internet resources: WTO website (Official WTO website) – http://www.wto.org/
Russia and the World Trade Organization (Russian WTO website) – http://www.wto.ru/
World Trade Organization: The Future of Successful Trading Starts Today - http://www.aris.ru/VTO/VTO_BOOK
