Switzerland on Friday sounded the alarm over the future of the World Trade Organization, warning that shifts in U.S. trade policy risk undermining the global rules-based system at a time of mounting pressure on international commerce.
Speaking on the sidelines of the WTO ministerial meeting in Yaounde, Swiss State Secretary for Economic Affairs Helene Budliger Artieda said Bern was concerned about proposals that could weaken core principles of the multilateral trading order.
Her remarks come as WTO members gather in Cameroon amid growing tensions over trade rules, rising protectionism, fractured supply chains and disputes over how to modernize the institution for a rapidly changing global economy.
At the centre of Switzerland’s concerns is the WTO’s Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) principle, one of the organization’s foundational rules. The principle requires member states to extend any trade advantage granted to one country to all others, helping to prevent discrimination and ensure predictability in global trade.
Washington has recently called for a fundamental rethink of the MFN system, arguing that the framework no longer reflects current trade realities and can allow some economies to benefit disproportionately from open markets without offering the same level of reciprocity.
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For Switzerland, a highly export-dependent economy, any weakening of that rule could carry major consequences.
“Switzerland is concerned,” Budliger Artieda said in an interview with Swiss news agency Keystone-ATS, warning that the erosion of WTO disciplines could have an outsized impact on smaller economies that rely on stable and transparent access to global markets.
She confirmed that Swiss officials had held a brief exchange with United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on the issue, but declined to elaborate on the details of the discussion.
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The intervention reflects a broader unease among many WTO members about the future of the institution, which has struggled in recent years to respond effectively to geopolitical shocks, trade disputes and the growing use of industrial policy by major powers.
WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told delegates at the opening of the Yaounde meeting that the global trading system is facing some of its most severe disruptions in the past 80 years, underscoring the urgency of reform.
The ministerial conference, which brings together representatives from more than 160 member states, is seen as a key test of whether the WTO can remain relevant in a world increasingly shaped by strategic rivalry and unilateral economic measures.
For many countries, especially smaller and developing economies, the WTO remains essential because it provides a rules-based framework that offers a degree of protection against the dominance of larger trading powers.
Swiss officials argue that this predictability is vital not only for exporters and manufacturers, but also for investors and businesses making long-term decisions in a fragile international environment.
Trade plays an outsized role in the Swiss economy, with exports of goods and services accounting for a large share of national output. That dependence has made Bern one of the strongest advocates of preserving multilateral trade disciplines and reviving trust in the WTO.
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The concerns raised in Yaounde also come against the backdrop of wider debates over digital commerce, subsidies, dispute settlement and climate-related trade measures — all of which have exposed divisions between advanced and developing economies.
One of the WTO’s most persistent institutional problems remains the paralysis of its dispute settlement appellate mechanism, which has weakened the body’s ability to enforce rules and resolve trade conflicts effectively.
Without credible enforcement, trade experts warn, the system risks becoming increasingly vulnerable to selective application and political bargaining.
Switzerland’s warning in Yaounde therefore goes beyond one specific disagreement with Washington. It reflects a wider fear that if major powers begin to move away from shared rules, the global trading system could become more fragmented, less predictable and harder for smaller economies to navigate.
As ministers continue talks in Cameroon, the challenge for the WTO will be whether it can bridge those divisions and convince members that reform can strengthen — rather than unravel — the institution at the heart of global trade governance.
Switzerland has raised fresh concerns over the future of the World Trade Organization, warning that a shift in U.S. trade policy could weaken the rules-based system that underpins global commerce. The concerns were voiced on the sidelines of the WTO’s 14th Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé, where trade ministers are debating how to reform the organization amid rising geopolitical and economic tensions. The WTO said the meeting opened with calls to “reinvigorate” the institution at a time of crisis, while Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala warned that the global trading system is facing some of its deepest disruptions in decades.
At the centre of Switzerland’s concern is the Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) principle, one of the WTO’s foundational rules. Under MFN, a country that grants a trade advantage—such as a lower tariff—to one WTO member is generally expected to extend the same treatment to all other members. The WTO says this principle is designed to prevent discrimination and create predictability in international trade, particularly for smaller economies that rely on stable and transparent market access.
Switzerland’s concern matters because its economy is highly exposed to international trade. According to World Bank-linked trade data, exports of goods and services account for roughly 73% of Swiss GDP, underlining how dependent the country is on open and predictable trade rules. For economies like Switzerland, the WTO’s dispute settlement system and non-discrimination principles are not abstract legal concepts—they are central to economic stability, export competitiveness and investment planning.
The warning also reflects broader anxieties within the WTO about the future of multilateral trade governance. The institution has been under pressure for years due to a rise in protectionist measures, subsidy disputes, geopolitical rivalries and slow progress on updating rules for the digital economy. The WTO’s own recent agenda in Yaoundé has highlighted tensions over issues such as e-commerce rules, industrial policy, transparency and dispute settlement reform. Reuters reported that negotiators are also trying to bridge divisions over the long-running moratorium on customs duties for electronic transmissions, an issue now seen as a test of the WTO’s continued relevance.
One of the biggest institutional challenges remains the weakening of the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism, especially the paralysis of its appellate system. That has made it harder for countries—especially smaller and trade-dependent ones—to enforce rules or challenge measures they see as unfair. Okonjo-Iweala has also flagged weak subsidy notifications and growing mistrust among members as obstacles to reform, warning that these gaps fuel perceptions of unfair competition and undermine confidence in the system.
For Switzerland, the message is clear: if major powers move further away from multilateral commitments, smaller export-oriented economies stand to lose disproportionately. Its intervention in Yaoundé therefore reflects not only concern about one country’s policy stance, but also a broader fear that the global trading order could become more fragmented, less predictable and increasingly shaped by power rather than rules.
