NATIONAL ADMINISTERED PROTECTION AGENCIES: THEIR ROLE IN THE POST-URUGUAY ROUND WORLD

Abstract

This paper reviews the role of national administered protection agencies, whose responsibility is the enforcement of national trade remedy laws. After reviewing four recent trade remedy cases we argue that the role of the national administered protection agencies should be changed. Given the additional responsibilities the WTO has assumed in administering the Agreement on Agriculture, the growth of regional integration agreements and the increasing use of anti-dumping and countervailing duty actions against fairly traded imports, we argue that all trade actions should be taken to the WTO for settlement. The role of the national administered protection agencies should be changed to make them agents for trade liberalization. This would involve them taking on three primary functions: 1) as transparency agents; 2) as investigatory agents; and 3) as advocacy agents.International Relations/Trade,