Research On The WTO Norms On PTAs

The multilateral trading path and the regional trading path are always the two trading options for most countries in the process of trade liberalization.Thus,the relationship between these two systems is concerned by many scholars.The World Trade Organization,as the most important representative of the multilateral trading system,sees the regional trading system as an important exception of its Most Favored Nation Principle.The WTO sets out series of regulations on the PTAs relating to trade in goods,including the GATT Article ???,Understanding on the Interpretation of Article ??? of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994,Transparency Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements.For ensuring the implementation of these rules,the WTO establishes the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements,together with the Committee on Trade and Development,as the bodies entrusted with the implementation of the mechanism.The DSB,on the other hand,adopted nine reports relating the GATT Article ???.To summarize,the WTO has done a lot in regulating the PTAs.Since the establishment of the WTO,PTAs have increased rapidly.Up to April 2013,there are 297 PTAs notified and in force(counting goods and services separately).Among them,over 300 are notified since 1995.Until now,nearly every country in the world involves in or currently is discussing an PTA(the only exception country is Mongolia).At the same time,PTAs are transforming from bilateral to multilateral.Multilateral PTAs including The Trans-Pacific Partnership will replace bilateral PTAs,becoming the mainstream of the future PTAs.In the development,PTAs violate some of the WTO regulations.Some of the PTAs have flaws in meeting the requirements of the zero tariff cut.While others have delays and contents lack in the process of notification.All of them are challenges to the WTO MFN principles.Moreover,different PTAs have different preferential rule of origin.They deteriorate the Spaghetti Bowl phenomenon,reduce the usage of preferential tariffs.This series of existing problems reveal the deficiency of the WTO rules on PTAs.Hence,reformation is a significant task for the WTO members.In the current WTO Doha Round,members have proposed many proposals on reforming the WTO rules on PTAs.Yet the only achievement is the Transparency Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements.Systemic issues have not been solved.There are two main obstacles.Subjectively,the WTO members' Prisoner Dilemma drives the members to abandon the multilateral system which has much profit risk,while objectively,the WTO single undertaking and consensus restrict the outcomes of the negotiation.In addition,multilateral PTAs including the TPP Agreement could bring more economic profits to the WTO members in a short period of time.These PTAs not only turn the WTO members' interests from the WTO negotiation to the PTAs,but also become a major threat to the multilateral trading system.Beyond all doubt,comparing to the regional trading system,the multilateral trading system has obvious advantages in the long run.Comforming a clearer and more realistic reforming path will have the WTO members refocusing on the WTO reform.In regulating the PTAs,the effective reforming path rely on the joint efforts of the multilateral and regional trading system.On the level of multilateral trading system,WTO members should focus on perfecting the GATT Article XXIV,especially clarifying the meaning of the articles.Meanwhile,the WTO should also ensure the compliance of the regulation by using Transparency Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements.On the level of regional trading system,WTO members should advance the process of PTA multilateralizaion,and introduce the“open accession”article into the PTAs.For those PTAs in force,WTO may consider reforming the GATT Article XXIV by adding an conditional“grandfathering”provision.The future world trade will present a landscape that multilateral trading system and regional trading system are coexisting and interdependence.The WTO has been proved to be a great success.The future multilateral PTAs will be not only a complement on non-trade areas,but also incenting the elimination of tariffs,simplifying and unifying preferential rules of origin,and becoming the best supplement of the multilateral trading system in the process of trade liberalization.