11 déc. 2001 - China's WTO Accession

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Question 2c.
China formally joined the WTO after 15 years of negotiation.

Regarding membership, the contracting parties of GATT 1947 automatically became the members of WTO. WTO membership has greatly expanded, encompassing many developing countries that previously were outsiders or inactive players in trade negotiations. To be a WTO member, a state must already agree to certain practices and terms of trade, approved by existing members.

A country has to go through a six-step process before becoming a WTO member. First of all, the country submits an application. This application is reviewed by a Working Party for Accession forms. Second, the Observer then submits forms that describe its current trade policies in detail. This is called Memorandum of the Foreign Trade Regime. Then the Working Party reviews these forms to determine how they would affect its ability to conform to WTO requirements. Third, the Working Party then outlines all the terms and conditions that the Observer must meet before becoming a member. After becoming a member of WTO, the Observer must agree to follow all WTO rules. It must agree to make the legislative and structural changes needed to meet these rules. Fourth, the Observer then negotiates bilateral trade agreements with any country it wishes. The agreement will set, reduce, or remove tariffs. The agreements will open up access to the countries’ markets. Every agreement must also be applied to all other WTO members. This means the bilateral agreements can take a long time to negotiate because the stakes are so high. Fifth, the Working Party drafts the terms of membership. The so-called Accession Package has three agreements. Sixth, the General Council approves the Protocol of Accession. It issues its decision and publishes the approved Protocol of Accession. It issues its decision and publishes the approved Protocol of Accession.

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