Policy Meeting: Multilateralism in the Trump-Xi Era

For years, the US has been one of the main champions and a leader of a multilateral system. However, with the advent of President Trump, there has been a shift in the US towards bilateralism, clearly reflected in actions such as the US’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, as well as the generally critical stance adopted against global institutions such as the World Bank. On the economic front, tensions have been steadily rising not only between the US and perceived rivals such as China, but also between its traditional allies. In contrast, China has been increasingly presenting itself as a staunch supporter of a multilateral rules-based system in global fora such as Davos or the UN’s General Assembly. The debate on the reform of the WTO is one of the aspects at the core of this issue, and it is currently high on the agenda of global players.

From its side, the European Union has pursued an active course of action on the reform of the WTO: among other activities, it created a Joint Working Group with China on WTO Modernisation, published in September a concept paper on the WTO reform and participated in October in a ministerial meeting attended by 13 leading WTO member countries. In a nutshell, it is no exaggeration to state that the current discussions will be instrumental towards shaping the face of multilateralism in tomorrow’s world order.

The EU SME Centre and the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China are pleased to invite you to join our next Policy Meeting, where Head of the Trade Section at the EU Delegation to China Mr. Ulrich Weigl and Managing Partner in Covington & Burling LLP Mr. Tim Stratford will discuss multilateralism from the perspective of the EU, China and the US, as well as the current status of the debate on the WTO reform. The event will take place on the 26th November from 16:00 to 18:00 at the Marriot Hotel Northeast Beijing. The meeting will be held under Chatham House rules.

Tentative Agenda

Meeting Registration and Cancellation

This is a closed meeting open to consortium partners’ management and relevant stakeholders of EU SME Centre Phase II including embassies or consulates only. If you meet the criteria and would like to attend, please send your information to ecamela@europeanchamber.com.cn with subject line and your information by COB Sunday, 25th November. You will receive a confirmation email.A maximum of two representatives from each stakeholder may attend if the capacity allows it.