Former Deputy Director-General of the World Trade Organization Yi Xiaozhun on the Outlook for WTO Reform

On September 16, 2021, Ambassador Yi Xiaozhun, former Deputy Director-General of the World Trade Organization, gave a lecture on the prospects of WTO reform at the Institute of World Economics and Politics and the National Institute for Global Strategy of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Zhang Yuyan, the Academician of CASS, Director of IWEP and Chief Expert of NIGS, presided over the lecture and delivered a welcome speech. Senior Fellow Yao Zhizhong, Secretary-General of NIGS, Senior Fellow Zou Zhibo, Deputy Director of IWEP, Senior Fellow Zhang Bin, Deputy Director of IWEP, and participants from IWEP and the University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences attended the lecture.

In his speech, Ambassador Yi reviewed the changes in international situation over the past 20 years, and the impacts of these changes to China’s position at the WTO during this period. He then examined some of the concerns of international community on WTO reform and elaborated on the key issues at the current stage.