Roberto Azevedo  

Against the backdrop of U.S. President Donald Trump calling the World Trade Organisation a “disaster” for the U.S., WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo has said that the U.S. has been very clear on its support to organization, but wanted some upgrades and reforms in its functioning.

Mr. Azevedo is in India for a two-day informal ministerial meeting of WTO members over Monday and Tuesday. The meeting assumes significance following the increase in duty on steel and aluminium by the U.S., and the U.S. taking India to the WTO on export incentive programmes.

“The U.S. has been very clear that it supports the WTO,” Mr. Azevedo said, while briefing the media following a CII event on Monday. “The U.S. sees some conversations that are happening at the WTO now as very welcome and they support that.”

‘World has changed’

“At the same time, the U.S. has been saying that they have some concerns with the way the WTO functions,” Mr. Azevedo added. “The U.S. maintains that the world has changed significantly since the WTO’s inception in 1995, and it wants some upgrades and reforms in the WTO.”

“The WTO has been a disaster for this country, for our country,” Mr. Trump said on March 1, while speaking at an interaction with steel and aluminium industry representatives. “It has been great for China and terrible for the United States, and great for other countries. But terrible for the United States.”

Mr. Azevedo added that the trade environment globally was very risky at the moment and that the WTO was facing challenges from both within and outside. “We have very significant challenges before us,” he said, adding that one example was the “compromised” state of the dispute settlement system of the WTO due to a blockage in the appointment of appellate body members.