The Appellate Body, the WTO dispute settlement system, and the politics of multilateralism

The end of the Cold War gave rise to renewed optimism about the capacity of multilateral institutions to respond to global political, economic, and social challenges. Within a decade, however, the East/West divide would be replaced by other conflicts, schisms, and complexities – the debate over globalization, the related development challenge, global terrorism and nuclear non-proliferation, and the rise of China as a regional and perhaps global superpower. The politics of multilateralism appear as difficult and fragile as ever – whether the ‘climate change’ negotiations (Kyoto) or the role of the UN Security Council in policing the use of force. Recently, expert commissions have issued reports on reform of two crucial multilateral fora – the United Nations and the World Trade Organization (WTO), a sign of recognition that multilateral institutions must change to respond to new challenges.