Not only has the WTO proved unsuccessful as a forum for solving these issues, but also progress in responding to the challenges posed by the emergence of new forms of trade, such as e-commerce, has been rather limited. The experience in other relevant areas such as investment, intellectual property protection and public procurement, has been similar. Indeed, the collapse of the Doha round in 2001 had already raised doubts about the WTO governance framework. In particular, the effectiveness of the Dispute Resolution System and the viability of conducting trade discussions and adopting decisions involving over 160 countries, on the basis of general consensus, had been called into question. In fact, given the deadlock in WTO negotiations, countries have chosen to shift their liberalisation efforts towards regional or bilateral agreements. However, it is important to stress that bilateral agreements represent only a second-best solution. They usually entail some form of trade diversion which, from a global perspective, reduces the positive effects stemming from trade creation.4 What is more, bilateral or regional agreements, give rise to situations in which large trading nations or blocks are typically in a stronger negotiating position than other economies, generating an asymmetric system of international relations. And, in this context, a trade war has unfolded, which is already taking a heavy toll as regards its effects on global trade and global uncertainty and is currently one of the greatest threats to the world economy.
The other relates to global imbalances: deficit and surplus countries should both take action in a cooperative manner. Again, a core element of any of these proposals is complementarity between sound domestic policies, international cooperation and a robust global financial safety network that accommodates both regional and multilateral actors. Conclusions In short, the multilateral economic cooperation system, despite its limitations, has allowed significant development in many countries over the last few decades. Today, more than ever, its defining principles of cooperation, rules, universality, formality and sovereign equity need to be preserved to enable the various global challenges ahead to be addressed. Notwithstanding this, the new economic, social and geopolitical realities call for a reform of multilateralism. We must work to adapt multilateral institutions to the new realities, eliminating obstacles that hinder collective action, making them more flexible, efficient, representative, transparent and accountable. They also need to become more cooperative and to better complement regional arrangements and institutions. Thank you. 8/8