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The WTO Announces the Candidate for New Director General, Why Won’t the United States Support Him?
▲ The selection of the new director general of the World Trade Organization was unilaterally rejected by the United States. The Beijing News produced our video.
The spokesman for the World Trade Organization announced on the 28th that Nigerian economist candidate Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has recommended candidates for the new CEO. The United States expressed disapproval of this result and continued to support Yu Myung Hee, current Minister of Trade Negotiations at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy.
The BBC analysis said that the United States does not support Oconjo-Iweara, which does not mean that she cannot be elected, but the US move may have a greater impact on the final decisions of the members. WTO members plan to hold a general council meeting on November 9 to determine the nominee for director general.
Disagreements between the United States and Europe on the candidate for WTO Director-General are open
The cause of the confusion was that Azevedo of Brazil, the sixth director general of the World Trade Organization, resigned on August 31, ending his term a year earlier. The selection process for the new CEO began on June 8. After several rounds of selection, the final competition was between Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Yu Mingxi. In the early stages of the competition, Yu Mingxi seemed to have the upper hand. It has been recommended by Azevedo and supported by the United States and some European countries, and the odds of winning appear to be higher.
The key turning point is the change in attitude of the EU. After EU leaders discussed in the Belgian capital Brussels in the middle of last month, they reached a consensus and approved the appointment of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the new Director-General of the WTO.
An EU official said that the decision to support Ngozi Okonjo-Iweara is “a strong signal to strengthen the multilateral order” and is also “a clear signal of mutual trust for Africa.” In other words, the choice of the EU is based more on geopolitical considerations.
Another major news that is unfavorable for Yu Mingxi comes from Japan. The Japanese government has recently decided not to support the election of Han Yu Mingxi as Director-General of the WTO. The reason is simple. Japan believes that, as a Korean, it can trade with Japan and South Korea once it takes office. The dispute is not good for Japan.
From a professional perspective, Yu Mingxi, who is familiar with the international trading system, seems to be more qualified for this position. Although Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has held important positions, especially vice president of the World Bank, he has no direct experience in handling international trade affairs. Furthermore, Nigeria and even the African Union have a relatively low proportion in the international trading system and their right to speak is limited.
And Yu Myung Hee has been in the Korean government’s department of commerce since 1995, dealing with international business affairs for almost her entire career. South Korea’s prominent position in world trade also adds points to Yu Myung Hee’s appointment as Director-General of the WTO.
The United States supports Yu Mingxi not only because of his professional qualifications but also because of his personal interests. Although both candidates have experience studying in the United States and have deep connections to the United States, the special relationship between the United States and South Korea has made Yu Myung Hee more popular in the United States. The exchanges are more frequent.
Of course, this does not mean that the special relationship between the United States and South Korea allows Yu Mingxi to favor the United States after taking office. In fact, you can also see the differences between the United States and South Korea in the field of trade and the allocation of military spending, that the government of South Korea has its own results in diplomacy with the United States. For the United States, even as an opponent, it tends to be more familiar with the Koreans, which is also normal thinking.
Behind the differences is the dispute between the United States and Europe for the dominance of the WTO
In addition to the different criteria for the selection of candidates, the United States and the European Union have “hardened” on the issue of candidates for CEO. The deeper reason is the dispute over the dominance of the WTO.
Since the Trump administration came to power, there have been major shifts in US international policy. The “America only” trend is very obvious, and the relationship with the EU is not harmonious. Trump not only publicly supports Brexit, but also “plays an important role” with NATO’s European allies on European defense issues.
The serious gap in the alliance between the United States and Europe is also reflected in international affairs. The United States has lost patience with the multilateral cooperative relationship with core international organizations that the EU values, and has often “backed out” or threatened to pull out, putting many international organizations in an embarrassing situation.
In this context, it is also inevitable that the EU will show an independent and tough attitude towards the United States. On trade disputes, Beixi No. 2 and the Iran nuclear deal, the European Union and major European powers have shown a stance against the United States. Not surprisingly, the dispute broke out over the WTO Director-General candidate.
In fact, the United States has a long history of dissatisfaction with the WTO. Late last year, the “final court of appeal” of the WTO dispute settlement mechanism, the “closure” of the Appellate Body, was the result of the long-term operation of the United States, rather than a whim of the Trump administration. This can be seen as a preview of the dispute over CEO candidates.
The US intention is to launch a fundamental reform of the WTO under his leadership, or to make this important international organization that restricts its actions lose its power. This is an unintended result for EU countries. The fight between us in the WTO will continue.
However, there are also uncertainties about the ability of EU countries to counter American willpower. Central and Eastern European countries tend to favor the United States and it is questionable whether they can cooperate. Among the two pillars of the European Union, confronting the United States is not the focus of the Macron administration, it is Germany that is really tough on the United States. After the United States issued a threat to the WTO, the WTO promptly ruled in favor of the United States on the protracted dispute over the “Boeing-Airbus” subsidy dispute between the United States and Europe.
Therefore, regardless of who the appointment of the WTO Director-General is ultimately directed to, the future path of WTO reform will also face numerous difficulties as the United States and Europe are “seized”, unilateralism increases, and intensifies. trade disputes.
□ Guan Buyu (columnist)
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