What are the key areas of reform if the WTO has to survive in the present context of ‘Trade War’, especially keeping in mind the interest of India?
Approach · directive: “what are the key areas of reform”
What it asks · Identify the reforms needed for the WTO to stay relevant amid trade wars (dispute settlement, rule-making, agriculture, developing-country treatment, new issues) and India's priorities in each.
The question has 2 parts — answer each
- Identify the key areas of reform for the WTO to survive the trade war: dispute settlement, negotiating function, agriculture, special and differential treatment, unilateral measures, new issues
- Bring out India's interest in each reform area
Open with · Tariff escalation from 2018, especially between the US and China, and strain on WTO dispute settlement have raised doubts about the rules-based trading order.
Cover
- Dispute settlement: restore a functioning Appellate Body, hobbled by the US refusal to approve new members; address concerns of overreach while preserving binding two-tier adjudication, which protects developing countries like India.
- Negotiating function: consensus makes decisions slow and some push plurilateral deals, but India insists on multilateral, inclusive outcomes and opposes plurilateral agreements entering WTO rules without consensus.
- Agriculture: subsidy rules favour rich countries; India seeks a permanent solution on public stockholding for food security (MSP-based procurement) and a special safeguard mechanism, with cuts in developed countries' trade-distorting subsidies.
- Special and differential treatment: flexibility for developing countries is under attack, with demands that large economies 'graduate'; India argues that development needs and low per capita incomes justify continued flexibility.
- Unilateral measures: tariffs justified on 'national security' grounds, such as the US steel and aluminium tariffs of 2018, and retaliation strain the system; reform needs clearer discipline on security exceptions and better transparency.
- New areas: rules on e-commerce, investment facilitation, industrial subsidies and state-owned enterprises are being sought; India wants policy space for digital and industrial development and easier movement of professionals (Mode 4) in services.
Close with · The WTO can survive by restoring its dispute system, securing balanced rules on agriculture and development, and settling new issues by consensus; India's interest lies in a rules-based system that keeps policy space for food security and development.
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2018, GS Paper II — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 280 words (UPSC limit 250) · Minimalist IAS
Tariff escalation from 2018, led by the US and China, and the paralysis creeping over WTO dispute settlement have raised doubts about the survival of the rules-based trading order; reform must restore trust without sacrificing development.
Key areas of reform, and India's stake
- Dispute settlement: restore the Appellate Body, blocked by the US refusal since 2017 to approve new members; address concerns about overreach and delay while keeping binding two-tier adjudication, which shields developing countries like India from power-based settlement.
- Negotiating function: consensus makes decisions slow and some members push plurilateral deals; India insists on inclusive multilateral outcomes and opposes plurilateral agreements being written into WTO rules without consensus.
- Agriculture: subsidy rules favour rich countries; India seeks a permanent solution on public stockholding for food security (MSP-based procurement), a special safeguard mechanism against import surges, and cuts in developed countries' trade-distorting support.
- Special and differential treatment: flexibilities for developing countries are under attack, with demands that large economies 'graduate'; India argues that low per capita income and development needs justify continued flexibility.
- Unilateral measures: tariffs justified on 'national security' grounds, such as the US steel and aluminium tariffs of March 2018, and tit-for-tat retaliation strain the system; discipline on the security exception and better notification and transparency are needed.
- New issues: e-commerce, investment facilitation, industrial subsidies and state-owned enterprises are on the table; India wants policy space for digital and industrial development, and progress on Mode 4 movement of professionals in services.
The WTO can survive by restoring its dispute system, securing balanced rules on agriculture and development, and settling new issues by consensus; India's interest lies in a rules-based order that keeps policy space for food security and development.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.