As early as December 11, the World Trade Organization (WTO) “will become incapacitated”, because this is what the US president Donald Trump wants, who does everything to paralyze the organization. This is written by the author of the article in the German edition of Der Spiegel Marcus Becker.
If a miracle does not happen, then next week Donald Trump will achieve his goal. The fact is, as Der Spiegel journalist explains, that for two years the United States has been blocking the process of selecting new members of the WTO Appellate Body. There are seven places in it, and at the moment only three of them are occupied. On Tuesday, two of the three current judges expire.
“The appellate body will thus come to an end, and with it the main supervisory authority of the world trade”, – says Becker.
As the author warns, on Wednesday, December 11, when the body ceases to operate, “the entire WTO system will collapse, and the rules of world trade will de facto cease to apply”.
According to Brussels, Donald Trump is achieving this because “in the world without the WTO, he expects to beat out more favorable conditions for the United States”. As soon as the work of the WTO Appellate Body is paralyzed, “the right of the fittest” can return to world trade, and the European Union is “arming itself for this case”, says the article author Markus Becker.