USCIB led an effort along with nearly a dozen other leading business and trade associations to send a letter to United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai regading the upcoming World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial and in reforming its dispute settlement system.

The letter welcomed USTR Tai’s recent remarks affirming the U.S. commitment to the WTO and to successful outcomes at the upcoming 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12).

The letter stated: We agree that the WTO can fulfill the promise of the Marrakesh Agreement by supporting market-based principles, promoting inclusive growth and addressing the challenges of today and tomorrow.

The letter also emphasized that the U.S. and global economy, and the livelihoods of workers around the world, depend on an effective WTO. A level multilateral playing field helps American manufacturers, services suppliers, innovators and farmers – large and small – by enabling workers and communities to compete more fairly in markets around the globe. Since 1948, under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the WTO, world trade increased forty-fold in real terms to more than twenty-five trillion dollars today. More than thirty percent of U.S. GDP today is derived from trade, and over forty million American jobs – one in five – depend on trade and trade lowers costs for American families.

Regarding reform, the letter emphasized: “building off MC12, the WTO needs reform to meet the demands of today by modernizing its agreements and ensuring members follow existing rules and commitments. We support advancing a comprehensive WTO reform agenda that tackles dispute settlement, special and differential treatment, distortive non-market industrial subsidies, and state-owned enterprises. Reforms should also cover emerging services and technologies, enhance inclusivity, and help harness trade to address climate change. A modern WTO should expand plurilateral pathways to trade liberalization, update institutional rules and procedures, improve monitoring, promote greater transparency through notifications, and involve more stakeholders.”

The full letter can be viewed directly below.

Organizations leading the effort included USCIB, Business Roundtable, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, NFTC, American Chemistry Council, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the American Property Casualty Insurance Association, the Business Software Alliance and the Coalition for Services Industries.

Dear Ambassador Tai:

We welcome your recent remarks affirming the U.S. commitment to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and to successful outcomes at the upcoming 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12). We agree that the WTO can fulfill the promise of the Marrakesh Agreement by supporting market-based principles, promoting inclusive growth and addressing the challenges of today and tomorrow.

The U.S. and global economy, and the livelihoods of workers around the world, depend on an effective WTO. A level multilateral playing field helps American manufacturers, services suppliers, innovators and farmers – large and small – by enabling workers and communities to compete more fairly in markets around the globe. Since 1948, under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the WTO, world trade increased 40-fold in real terms to more than $25 trillion today. More than 30 percent of U.S. GDP today is derived from trade, and over 40 million American jobs – 1 in 5 – depend on trade and trade lowers costs for American families.

A successful MC12 will require urgent U.S. leadership to secure concrete deliverables that advance U.S. interests and competitiveness in areas such as fisheries, domestic regulations, agriculture, e-commerce, trade facilitation and pandemic response. Such results will demonstrate that the WTO can produce meaningful outcomes and can set a foundation for future reforms and commitments. Outcomes that weaken WTO rules, however, such as by undermining longstanding disciplines on subsidies, electronic transmissions or intellectual property, would instead weaken core WTO principles and commitments as well as support for the institution.

Building off MC12, the WTO needs reform to meet the demands of today by modernizing its agreements and ensuring members follow existing rules and commitments. We support advancing a comprehensive WTO reform agenda that tackles dispute settlement, special and differential treatment, distortive non-market industrial subsidies, and state-owned enterprises. Reforms should also cover emerging services and technologies, enhance inclusivity, and help harness trade to address climate change. A modern WTO should expand plurilateral pathways to trade liberalization, update institutional rules and procedures, improve monitoring, promote greater transparency through notifications, and involve more stakeholders.

WTO dispute settlement holds parties to their commitments. Reforming the WTO dispute settlement system will require the United States to offer concrete and detailed proposals that address longstanding process and appellate body overreach concerns to enable the system to resolve disputes efficiently and effectively. The United States has successfully used WTO dispute settlement to challenge WTO violations without resorting to unilateral measures that draw retaliation and tit-for-tat escalation. Reforming and restoring the system will support U.S. interests and can hold WTO members accountable to their commitments.

The Administration can best support the international rules-based system and the WTO by making concrete proposals and partnering with allies who share market-based trade liberalization, modernization, and reform principles. Moreover, scheduling more frequent Trade Ministers meetings could help overcome impasses, support reforms and foster progress. We will continue to work with you and your team to advance our shared goals for the WTO. U.S. companies, workers, and families will all benefit when the WTO achieves what it was established to do.

Sincerely,

American Chemistry Council

American Farm Bureau Federation

American Property Casualty Insurance Association

Business Roundtable

Business Software Alliance

Coalition for Services Industries

National Foreign Trade Council

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

U.S. Council for International Business

USCIB again provided international business community leadership at the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)’s World Investment Forum (WIF), a summit level meeting held virtually this year from UNCTAD’s Geneva headquarters. USCIB President/CEO Peter Robinson was a private sector speaker at one of the Summit leaders’ plenary panels, reprising a lead role he had taken at two earlier UNCTAD WIF sessions. Shaun Donnelly, a USCIB Senior Advisor, led the business panelists at the annual UNCTAD high-level Conference on International Investment Agreements (IIAs). Donnelly has participated, in person or virtually in Geneva in the last six UNCTAD IIA sessions. Business is often underrepresented at UNCTAD meetings, which tend to attract more participation from government officials, NGOs and academic representatives. USCIB consistently steps forward to ensure that business concerns and priorities are on the table.

In their interventions, both Robinson and Donnelly emphasized the importance of international private investment in driving global economic recovery, growth, and job creation and in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is imperative to business that investment decisions are backed by strong and enforceable international investment agreements (IIAs). Some foreign government representatives seem intent on weakening, even eliminating important “Investor-State Dispute Settlement” arbitration procedures, which can protect foreign investors from arbitrary and discriminatory treatment by host governments.

“We thought it was important to step forward again at this year’s World Investment Forum to ensure business perspectives were represented,” said Robinson. “I think we at USCIB have developed a good relationship with the leadership at UNCTAD and have helped to emphasize the importance of including business voices in their meetings. Investment is such an important issue as the world struggles for economic recovery, growth, good jobs and progress toward the UN SDGs. And forward progress will depend on strong multi-stakeholder collaboration, with UNCTAD being a key organization in bringing all relevant parties together. I also appreciated the opportunity to connect with UNCTAD’s new Secretary General Rebeca Grynspan, former Vice-President of Costa Rica.”

USCIB international partners served as panelists at the WIF, delivering similar messages. International Chamber of Commerce Secretary General John Denton spoke at the opening Summit session and Winand Quaedvlieg, a senior official from our Dutch counterpart national committee, VNO, and Chair of the Business at OECD (BIAC) Investment Committee, joined Donnelly on the important IIA panel session.

UNCTAD’s World Investment Forum continues on line virtually for the rest of the week. We will monitor sessions for important developments.