Structure and Activities of the World Trade Organization Under International Law

1. Introduction

After the Second World War, efforts were started by the winning countries of the war to establish an international economic cooperation system. The purpose of this planned system was to ensure a continuous peace order. WTO, which is the legal and institutional body of the multilateral trade system and has legal personality, officially started its activities on January 1, 1995.

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2. Establishment and Functions

The Customs Tariffs and the General Agreement on Trade (GATT) were negotiated among 23 states in 1947. The purposes of GATT is to remove the barrier to international trade by reducing customs tariffs and prevent discrimination in foreign trade. The main rules of GATT prohibit discrimination between members and between import and domestic production. GATT has the nature of an international agreement that regulates trade between countries within the scope of rights and responsibilities. From time to time, developments on tariff discounts were achieved with the Negotiation Tours (Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture Directorate General of Copyrights, 2020).

Between 1947-1994, GATT developed institutionally but also expanded in terms of purpose and membership. During this period, 8 separate multilateral trade negotiation rounds were held and concluded. The 1986-1994 Uruguay Round was the most comprehensive because the negotiation topics were those related to the transition to a world trade system. (Acer and Kaya, 2019)

The countries that were party to the Uruguay Round completed the negotiations on 15 December 1993 and the “Final Decision” was signed by the ministers in April 1994. With the Marrakech Declaration announced on April 15, 1994; The Uruguay Round negotiations were approved and it was announced that the seven meetings held under the Tariffs and Trade General Agreement strengthened the world economy and provided more trade, investment, employment and income growth (Wikipedia, 2020). In addition to the Final Decision accepted as a result of the meeting, the World Trade Organization Founding Agreement was adopted. Thus, an international organization with an institutional structure, which will provide economic cooperation of countries, was established. The agreement that established the WTO is an umbrella agreement. In other words, it contains agreements on many different topics (Acer and Kaya, 2019).

On January 1, 1995, the WTO officially began operating and replaced GATT. WTO determines the direction of international trade, it is an organ where the commercial problems of the member countries are resolved without resorting to unilateral measures. Also, ensures the integration of developing countries with the multilateral trade system. It manages and implements multilateral trade negotiations that form the WTO, and supervises national trade policies. It cooperates with international organizations involved in making global economic policy to achieve these goals (Wikipedia, 2020).

WTO has 164 members. Turkey has become a party to GATT during the Torquay Round in 1951.

The WTO Agreement consists of 29 separate texts related to different fields. Besides, there are 25 declarations, agreements and decisions involving members’ responsibilities. Agricultural goods trade and apparel products are also included in the WTO rules.

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3. WTO’s Decision-Making Methods

WTO uses the consensus method. Thanks to this method, although members participate in the consensus useful for the multilateral trading system, they have the opportunity to consider their interests. WTO uses the voting method in cases where consensus cannot be achieved. In these cases, each country has one vote and the decision is taken by majority vote (Wikipedia, 2020).

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4. Dispute Resolution in WTO

WTO members may request that the multilateral dispute resolution system resolve this situation if international trade rules are violated in a way that is harming them. The Dispute Resolution Unit monitors the implementation of accepted recommendations and rules and keeps this on the agenda unless the situation is eliminated. (Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020).

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5. Helping Developing Countries and Transition Economies

97 of the 128 countries that were members of the GATT at the end of 1994 consisted of developing countries that are still in the process of transition to the market economy. Therefore, great importance was attached to the development of these countries by the WTO. In this context, the WTO Secretariat organizes seminars alone and through cooperation with other international organizations. Over and above, it offers technical cooperation opportunities to these countries about the implementation of WTO commitments and participation in multilateral trade negotiations. WTO offers courses related to some of its activities, developing and underdeveloped countries are offered trade and export information taking into account their structures, and these countries are encouraged to participate in the WTO (Wikipedia, 2020).

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6. Trade and Environment

WTO establishes links between trade and environmental issues. WTO emphasizes that the environment should be protected to suit the needs of countries with different economic levels. The Doha Development Tour, which was launched in 2001, and the Trade and Environment Committee were established. This committee is authorized to make decisions on the market entry of environmental products, the relation between multilateral environmental agreements and WTO and development of environmentally sensitive trade practices (Wikipedia, 2020).

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7. Structure

The most authoritative unit of the WTO is the Ministerial Conference. The Ministerial Conference consists of representatives of the member countries. It meets once every two years (this number may increase) and decides on problems related to multilateral trade negotiations.

There are many sub-units related to the execution of daily works. One of these, the General Council conducts routine works on behalf of the Ministerial Conference. It reports to the Ministerial Conference. It consists of representatives of member governments. It consists of two parts: Conflict Resolution Body and Trade Policy Development Body. While the Conflict Resolution Body conducts dispute resolution procedures, the Trade Policy Development Body regularly reviews the trade policy of each WTO member. Conflict Resolution Body is one of the most important units that enable WTO to have a voice in the international arena. Members can take their disputes to this body if they cannot resolve their disputes among themselves. The decision of the Dispute Resolution Body is binding.

The General Council has delegated its responsibilities to three main bodies. These are; The Goods Trade Council, Service Trade Council and the Commercial Intellectual Property Rights Council. Committees under the Goods Trade Council are responsible for overseeing the monitoring and implementation of agreements that are the subject of goods trading. The other two councils supervise the follow-up and implementation of the agreements in their area of responsibility, and if necessary establish their sub-units.

The WTO Secretariat is located in Geneva. It has about 500 personnel. It is managed by one general manager and three deputy general managers. They are responsible for providing administrative and technical assistance to WTO bodies in negotiations and implementation of agreements. Secretarial also provides technical assistance and consultancy services to developing and less developed countries. Economists and statisticians at the WTO conduct research on trade policies and performances. Lawyers enforce WTO rules and resolve disputes arising from trade disputes. Much of the secretariat’s job is to start agreements with new members and to advise governments on membership.

WTO budget is 83 million USD. A part of this budget goes to the International Trade Center. The contributions of countries are determined in line with their share in trade (Wikipedia, 2020).

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8. Conclusion

Together with the WTO, international trade has achieved a system with a solid and institutional infrastructure. WTO; it is a forum where states negotiate trade agreements, a centre where trade disputes are resolved, and an institution that operates trade rules (Acer and Kaya, 2019). WTO is not only concerned with establishing rules for the liberalization of international trade. It is also under the responsibility of establishing some rules for the restriction of international trade to protect the environment, protect the consumer or protect the states that have economic problems. It communicates with non-governmental structures, parliamentarians, international organizations, the press and the public regarding its agenda. It works for companies and governments to learn and apply international rules on trade (Acer and Kaya, 2019).

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Bibliography

• Acer, Y. & Kaya, İ. (2019). Uluslararası Hukuk Temel Ders Kitabı İngilizce Özetli. Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık.
• World Trade Organization. Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism General Directorate of Copyrights. Retrieved on September 10, 2020, from, http://www.telifhaklari.gov.tr/Dunya-Ticaret-Orgutu-WTO
• World Trade Organization. Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Retrieved on September 10, 2020, from, http://www.mfa.gov.tr/dunya-ticaret-orgutu-__dto_.tr.mfa
• World Trade Organization. TUIC Academy. Retrieved on September 12, 2020, from, http://www.tuicakademi.org/dunya-ticaret-orgutu/
• World Trade Organization, Wikipedia. Retrieved on September 15, 2020. https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C3%BCnya_Ticaret_%C3%96rg%C3%BCt%C3%BC

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