India pushes for restoration of WTO appellate body as 'top-most priority'

India also called for effective formalisation of the ongoing informal dispute settlement reform discussions among some member nations at the WTO, at the 13th ministerial conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi

India on Wednesday pushed for the restoration of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) appellate body — the highest adjudicating authority — as the ‘topmost priority’ of any reform process in the global trade body.

India also called for the effective formalisation of the ongoing informal dispute settlement reform discussions among some members at the WTO, at the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi.

The WTO has a two-tier dispute settlement system, involving consultation and adjudication. It has remained non-functional since December 2019, as the US refused to agree to the appointment of fresh members to the seven-member appellate body. This has raised questions about the WTO’s overall credibility and the rules-based trade order it upholds.

The US claims that the present system has often overreached its mandate and has hinted at its preference for a single-tier system and more scope for bilaterally resolving disputes. On the other hand, developed countries have also raised issues concerning the working of this body and are seeking reforms.

The previous MC or MC12 had mandated member countries to “conduct discussions with the view to having a fully and well-functioning dispute settlement system accessible to all members by 2024”.

India believes that the format and pace of the informal discussions have posed significant challenges for most developing countries, particularly the least-developed countries (LDCs). To fix the deficiencies in the dispute settlement system, it has proposed a three-point action plan for WTO member nations.

“First, to transition the discussions on dispute settlement reforms to WTO formal bodies, preferably under the guidance of the Dispute Settlement Body Chair. Second, to ensure that the transition is not just a mere formality but results in an effective multilateralisation of the process which is member-driven, open, transparent, and inclusive, taking into account the myriad capacity and technical challenges of developing country members and LDCs,” according to an official statement released by India.

Apart from that, the restoration of the appellate body needs to be prioritised.

Members should be provided an opportunity to bring in new proposals at any stage, and the resulting text should be fully representative of the views in the room and be consensus-based, with hybrid participation being permitted.

In another area of discussion at the 13th ministerial meeting, India put forth a strong case for keeping ‘development’ at the core of the WTO work now and in the future.

In the discussions on the draft Abu Dhabi ministerial declaration, India stressed that the issues relevant to the developing countries should find focus and prominence, and new issues should not be considered for ministerial mandates unless past decisions and unfulfilled mandates were acted upon.

“India recalled that the principles of Special and Differential Treatment, which were facing attack from the developed members, were no exceptions to the general WTO rules, and, in fact, they were the inherent objectives of the Multilateral Trading System,” an official statement said.

India has proposed three action plan on dispute settlement system:

• Discussions on dispute settlement reforms should preferably be under the guidance of Dispute Settlement Body Chair
• Member nations should be able to bring in new proposals at any stage
• restoration of the appellate body needs to be prioritised