UPSC Civil Services Model Paper 7

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations .
At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments.
These documents provide the legal ground-rules for international commerce.
They are essentially contracts, binding governments to keep their trade policies within agreed limits .
The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business while allowing governments to meet social and environmental objectives .
The goal is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably, and freely as possible.
The bulk of the WTO’s current work comes from the 1986–94 negotiations called the Uruguay Round and earlier negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).
The WTO is currently the host to new negotiations , under the ‘ Doha Development Agenda ’ launched in 2001 .
WTO is not responsible for the Balance of Payment Crisis. IMF (International Monetary Fund) deals with the BoP crisis.
Hence, Statement 2 is incorrect.
Ministerial Conference The topmost decision-making body of the WTO is the Ministerial Conference, which usually meets every two years . Hence, Statement 1 is incorrect.
The Ministerial Conference can take decisions on all matters under any of the multilateral trade agreements.
General Council The General Council is the WTO’s highest-level decision-making body located in Geneva , meeting regularly to carry out the functions of the WTO.
It has representatives (usually ambassadors or equivalent) from all member governments and has the authority to act on behalf of the ministerial conference which only meets about every two years .