China, national interest and the WTO

China's participation in the WTO is often a subject matter of intense debate and analysis. Experts have argued that since its accession to the WTO in 2001 China has benefitted immensely from its membership of the multilateral intruding institution and has seen unprecedented growth in trade. Critics have often argued that China takes advantage of the multilateral system for its benefit and continues to violate trade rules by subsidizing its export industry and "manipulating" its currency. "Made in China" products seem to permeate countries and is a source of tension.I have blogged about China and its participation in the multilateral system here and here.

This piece in the National Interest highlighted China's growth in the WTO system and why it is important for China to stay within the multilateral system.

"Now that China has arrived as a global trading powerhouse, it must take on more responsibility for maintaining the system from which it benefits.First, it needs to play by the rules. The current international order was created by Western powers, but China has profited from these rules more than any other country and thus should abide by them. 

Second, China can’t afford to play the “developing country” card forever. It’s true that China’s GDP per capita is only around $5,500 and that it is still working to lift millions of people out of poverty. But at the same time, some of its economic practices are proving to be counterproductive and are stoking protectionist impulses abroad, a dynamic that is certainly not in China’s own best interests. 

Finally, as a rising power, there will be an increasing number of global challenges to which China will be expected to contribute resources. Setting aside phrases such as “non-interference” and “responsible stakeholder” for a minute, if China wants to build a “new type of great power relationship” with the United States, then it must shoulder more great-power burdens."

Jayati Ghosh and C.P.Chandrasekhar in this piece in the Hindu Business Line have differentiated the growth of China with other developing countries (especially other BRICS countries) and highlighted the growth story of China in world trade. It is clear that in terms of share in world trade China has clearly benefitted from its participation.

(The charts above all present data calculated from the online database of the WTO, http://stat.wto.org/Home/WSDBHome.aspx?Language=E)

Are there lessons to be learnt from China's involvement in the multilateral trading system? Is China charting its own course within the framework of trade rules that other developing countries can learn from? Is there a national strategy to engage with the multilateral system in order to ensure that national interest is protected?