A unilateral approach to international trade is unacceptable because all disputes should be settled within the framework of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) rules, acting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday at the ministerial summit of the 14th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Madrid
MADRID (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th December, 2019) A unilateral approach to international trade is unacceptable because all disputes should be settled within the framework of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) rules, acting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday at the ministerial summit of the 14th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Madrid.The two-day meeting of the ASEM foreign ministers started on Sunday in Madrid and has gathered over 50 representatives from Asian and European countries.
"Trade tensions represent a serious threat to prosperity. Differences in trade should be addressed within the framework of the multilateral system based on the World Trade Organization's rules. We know where the unilateral approach in this area can lead us," Sanchez said.
In addition, he called for progress in reforming the WTO, saying that trade exchanges should create opportunities for everyone, while their benefit should be equally divided among all participants.
According to the prime minister, both continents should work together to develop sustainable and wider ties to encourage economic growth and prosperity. On this, he added that increasing global interdependence provided opportunities for the ASEM to turn into a real driver of growth in international cooperation.
"It is necessary to lay the groundwork for settling conflicts and crises that threaten global security," Sanchez said, adding that threats like cybercrime and terrorism can be eliminated only through a multilateral approach.
He went on to say that protectionism and unilateralism were real threats to the fundamental norms of peaceful coexistence and that some landmark multilateral agreements had been repeatedly questioned.
The first ASEM summit took place in 1996. Currently, it includes 51 European and Asian countries which together account for 60 percent of the world population, 65 percent of the global GDP and 75 percent of global tourism as well as the European Commission and the Secretariat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
