At a Crossroads

摘要

To be, or not to be: That is the question facing the World Trade Organization (WTO) as it observes its 70th anniversary this year. Founded in 1948 as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, the WTO, together with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other international organizations built on the ruins of World War II, was once an important pillar of the international economic order dominated by the United States. However, the WTO is currently facing unprecedented challenges that, ironically, are largely posed by the U.S. itself.