WTO may seek to reappoint chief ahead of Trump presidency
2:31 pm Tuesday, November 12th, 2024
By Emma Farge
GENEVA (Reuters) – The World Trade Organization is planning a special meeting of its top decision-making body later this month where a call could be made on the reappointment of its Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a document showed on Tuesday.
Trade sources said such a meeting appeared to be a route that could fast-track the appointment process to avoid any risk of it getting blocked by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, whose teams and allies have criticised both Okonjo-Iweala and the trade watchdog in the past.
The WTO document sent by the General Council chair said the first day of the Nov. 28-29 meeting would allow Okonjo-Iweala, a former Nigerian finance minister, to present her vision for the 166-member organisation and answer delegates’ questions. The second day could provide “an opportunity for Members to take a decision on the appointment of the next Director-General”, it said.
Okonjo-Iweala, 70, is the sole candidate for the job and told Reuters she wants to complete “unfinished business” from her first term which includes new rules on cutting fishing subsidies and finding a fix for its hobbled appeals court.
Dozens of countries have voiced support in recent WTO meetings for her reappointment after her term expires on Aug. 31, 2025. But some have privately observed that the WTO’s election process, which typically lasts months, could allow for Trump’s team to oppose her candidacy.
Trump is set to be inaugurated on Jan. 20.
In 2020, his administration gave its support to a rival candidate and sought to block her first term. She secured U.S. backing only when President Joe Biden succeeded Trump in the White House.
Those who follow the trade body say it is likely to face a messy, recriminatory period for trade under Trump. He has vowed to impose new tariffs of 10%-20% on global imports and 60% on goods from China, well above the rates it has committed to under WTO rules and upending global trade flows.
Asked about the potential to speed the WTO’s reappointment of Okonjo-Iweala, Trump’s transition team responded with a non-specific answer.
“The American people reelected President Trump because they trust him to lead our country and restore peace through strength around the world. When he returns to the White House, he will take the necessary action to do just that,” a Trump-Vance transition spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
The U.S. Trade Representative’s office, still controlled by the Biden administration, declined to comment.
There is no guarantee that WTO members, which approve decisions by consensus, will agree to a second term for Okonjo-Iweala at the November meeting and the chair could opt to postpone the decision, trade sources said.
If they do pursue it, it might backfire, suggested Keith Rockwell, a former WTO director and senior fellow at the Hinrich Foundation. “Let’s see how the United States likes being pushed into a corner,” he said, calling the actions to speed up the appointment process “unprecedented.”
(Reporting by Emma Farge; Additional reporting by David Lawder in Washington; editing by Thomas Seythal, Alexandra Hudson and Richard Chang)
