In the midst of a trade dispute between the United States and China, 46 United Nations (UN) member countries signed a deal in Singapore last week to resolve trade conflicts.
In addition to China and the US, signatories to the Singapore Convention include countries such as South Korea and India. The European Union (EU) has yet to decide whether to accede to the agreement or whether the bloc’s member countries should sign the document individually.
The purpose of the UN convention is to facilitate international trade disputes through mediation, which is usually faster and cheaper than costly legal proceedings or arbitration.
Until now, this output was legally difficult to implement.
“Multilateralism is under pressure. But the solution is to make it better and not abandon it,” said Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Mediation is already used to resolve trade disputes in jurisdictions such as the United States and the United Kingdom, but is not globally accepted.
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs Stephen Mathias praised the agreement as a “historic convention” for peaceful dispute resolution.
“The uncertainty surrounding the implementation of agreements was the main obstacle to the greater use of mediation,” he said.
Source: Deutsche Welle
Pacto da ONU pode facilitar mediação de disputas comerciais
