The name place sign of United States is pictured on the country's desk before the General Council meeting at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland, July 26, 2018.
Russia's economy ministry said on Friday that the United States would suffer economically from not playing by the rules, following a threat by U.S. President Donald Trump to withdraw from the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Trump threatened in an interview with Bloomberg News on Thursday to pull the United States out of the global trade body if "they don't shape up".
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Thursday to withdraw his country from the World Trade Organization (WTO) unless it starts treating America better."If they don’t shape up, I would withdraw from the WTO," Trump told Bloomberg News in an interview at the White House.The president claims the organization has been treating the U.S. "very badly" even though the U.S. has won 87 percent of the cases it brings to the WTO against other countries, according to a Bloomberg analysis.But Trump's decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from other countries, combined with additional tariffs on Chinese goods, has put the U.S. in a difficult position.Turkey’s Trade Ministry announced on Aug. 20 that it had launched a legal process against Washington’s decision to impose tariffs on imports of Turkish steel and aluminum.India, China, Switzerland, Norway, Canada, Russia, Mexico and the European Union have also started legal processes against the U.S. at the WTO, according to the ministry.Trump’s tirade against the WTO is not the first instance of criticism by the U.S. against the organization.In January, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said that allowing China into the WTO in 2001 was a mistake.But experts argue that bringing China into the WTO and the global trade system was a successful way to avoid potential trade wars.While the U.S. has led the way in shaping the global economy and free market trade system in the post-World War II era, its withdrawal from the WTO would strike a major blow to itself, the global economy and financial markets, experts warn.Trump failed to fulfill promise to North Korea: ReportTrump: Wargames with South Korea could resume instantlyWhite House Counsel McGahn to leave post in the fall: TrumpCan Trump tweet his way out?Trump warns evangelical leaders privately of ‘violence’ if Republicans lose midterms
Trump threatens to pull US out of WTO