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Towards a New Bretton Woods? The Financial Crisis, the Doha Round and the Future of the WTO

Towards a New Bretton Woods? The Financial Crisis, the Doha Round and the Future of the WTO, Roberto Soprano, Università degli Studi di Salerno, 2013. Cambridge Scholars Publishing (Forthcoming)

  • “The economic crisis has challenged the role of international organizations and in particular the “Bretton Woods institutions” which have often been criticized for not having provided solutions to economic troubles. The role of the World Trade Organization in keeping markets open and to avoid the adoption of protectionist measures has obviously been put under scrutiny. The measures adopted by WTO and non-WTO Members during the crisis offered an opportunity to reflect about possible changes of the WTO system. Crises typically open the door to self-reflection and, thus, to musings about one’s own path. They provide time to reflect about the choices one has taken and not taken and the changes in the environment which require something to be done. Thus, the crisis offered the opportunity to further reflect on the role of WTO in the contemporary society. The world has drastically changed since the end of the Second World War and also (partially) from the 1995 period when the WTO was created. New actors have emerged as China, Brazil, South Africa (and Russia) which are raising their voice during the Doha Round and the links between trade and non-trade concerns have became more evident.”
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