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Please join the Atlantic Council’s GeoEconomics and South Asia Centers for a conversation on revitalizing the WTO. The organization has challenged the U.S. Administration’s tariffs on China and the sixteen year-long dispute between Airbus and Boeing has entered an acute phase, while the presidential campaign has zeroed in on the future of trade in the American economy. It couldn’t be a better time to discuss reforming the WTO to address the needs of today’s global marketplace.

The world has changed considerably since the WTO’s creation, and so must the WTO. It has experienced the rise of the Internet and other advanced technologies, China’s economic expansion, greater skepticism about the benefits of trade, and greater concern about income inequality. At the same time, the WTO itself has not met expectations. WTO negotiations have been slow to introduce new rules or increase market-access, the implementation and monitoring pillar has not held countries accountable for ignoring its requirements, and the dispute-settlement system has not strictly applied the rules as negotiated. Our experts will discuss how to best address the shortcomings of the WTO and adapt it to current global economic order.

Speakers

Ignacio Garcia-Bercero
Director
Directorate General for Trade of the European Commission

Soumaya Keynes
Trade and Globalization Editor
The Economist

Mark Linscott
Senior Advisor
The Asia Group
Nonresident Senior Fellow
Atlantic Council

Clete Willems
Nonresident Senior Fellow
Atlantic Council
Partner
Akin Gump LLP

Moderator

Julia Friedlander
C. Boyden Gray Senior Fellow and Deputy Director
GeoEconomics Center, Atlantic Council