WTO争端解决机制的效率

The Efficiency of the WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism

争端解决机制是世界贸易组织(WTO)的中心支柱。随着中国对外贸易的迅速发展,中国与WTO成员的贸易摩擦频频发生,国内要求利用WTO的争端解决机制解决这些摩擦的呼声不断高涨。在此背景下,对该机制的运行效率做出全面、科学的判断显得尤为重要。作者从该机制对WTO成员违反协定行为的预防作用、WTO成员使用其解决贸易摩擦的成本、争端的早期解决情况、专家小组/上诉机构裁决的公正性和争端的政策效果等5个方面对WTO争端解决机制的运行效率进行了全面的考察。结果显示,与关贸总协定(GATT)时期相比,WTO争端解决机制的效率总体上有所提高,但是并没有改变缺乏实施能力的旧有缺陷;在实际操作中,改革并没有完全达到预期目标,而且改革带来的收益也没有被所有WTO成员平等分享。

The dispute settlement mechanism is a central pillar of the WTO. With the rapid development of Chinese foreign trade, trade frictions between China and its trade partners (primarily WTO members) have frequently occurred. It is not surprising that more and more analysts have appealed to solve these problems through the WTO dispute settlement mechanism. However, in order to do so, a clear estimation of the efficiency of the mechanism is required. In this paper, the author attempts to discuss this issue from five perspectives: (1) to what extent the mechanism can prevent WTO members from violating the agreements, (2) the costs of using the mechanism, (3) the early settlement of disputes, (4) the equity of decisions based on the dispute settlement mechanism, and (5) the policy outcomes of the disputes. The author concludes that, compared to during GATT era, the efficiency of the WTO dispute settlement mechanism represents an improvement, but institutional discrepancies and problems of implementation prevent members from sharing the benefits equally.