Adam Tooze: Washington Is Undermining the Trade System It Helped Build
The World Trade Organization nears a breaking point over U.S. tariffs against China.
The United States, which was central to the establishment of the global trading system 75 years ago, is challenging it these days. Last month, the World Trade Organization (WTO) declared that some of the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, which U.S. President Joe Biden has kept in place, are illegitimate, according to the WTO’s own rules. The Biden administration responded essentially by saying it considers the tariffs to be justified on national security grounds. Conveniently, the appellate body at the WTO that would be tasked with adjudicating the dispute is unable to do its job because the United States has refused to appoint judges that would allow it to function. This comes as Europe is also upset at the United States for subsidies and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, which Europe claims are also in violation of the WTO. That may lead to other retaliatory tariffs—essentially the kind of trade war the WTO was designed to prevent.
Cameron Abadi is a deputy editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @CameronAbadi
More from Foreign Policy

No, the World Is Not Multipolar
The idea of emerging power centers is popular but wrong—and could lead to serious policy mistakes.

America Prepares for a Pacific War With China It Doesn’t Want
Embedded with U.S. forces in the Pacific, I saw the dilemmas of deterrence firsthand.

America Can’t Stop China’s Rise
And it should stop trying.

The Morality of Ukraine’s War Is Very Murky
The ethical calculations are less clear than you might think.
Join the Conversation
Commenting on this and other recent articles is just one benefit of a Foreign Policy subscription.
Already a subscriber?
.Subscribe Subscribe
View Comments
Join the Conversation
Join the conversation on this and other recent Foreign Policy articles when you subscribe now.
Subscribe Subscribe
Not your account?
View Comments
Join the Conversation
Please follow our comment guidelines, stay on topic, and be civil, courteous, and respectful of others’ beliefs.