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A meeting between then Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (left) and then South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo in October 2015. (Yonhap News)

South Korea Minister for Trade Yoo Myung-hee, who is currently bidding to become director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), shared a message reiterating the importance of reforms to the organization.

Speaking with reporters at the Government Complex in Sejong on Aug. 6, Yoo provided an explanation on the current situation with the director-general election. Yoo has been campaigning since officially declaring her candidacy for the position last June. If elected, she would become both the first Korean and the first woman to serve in the position. The other candidates currently being mentioned as strong rivals are former World Bank Managing Director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria and former WTO Ministerial Conference Chairperson Amina C. Mohamed of Kenya.

During a director-general candidate campaign announcement in Geneva last month, Yoo described her core vision as one of strengthening the “three Rs” for the crisis-stricken WTO: “relevance, resilience, and responsiveness.” These days, the WTO is seen by many as having been effectively defanged, with its Appellate Body effectively paralyzed by US objections.

“What I detected from my conversations with dozens of ministers is that many countries are feeling disappointed and frustrated with the WTO’s inability to do its job. They all agreed that there need to be reforms to restore the WTO’s functions in terms of negotiations, disputes, and implementation,” Yoo said. Regarding the methods of carrying out WTO reforms, she said she planned to “hold discussions involving several different approaches,” noting that there were “large differences of opinion among member countries on the role and authority of the Appellate Body.”

Yoo also stressed that the WTO “will need to guarantee free movements of products and services, particularly in the event of another future crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic, while ensuring that [such a crisis] is not abused as an opportunity for applying protective trade measures.”

“I suggested the ‘three Rs’ in the sense of making the necessary advanced preparations for this, and the response has been very positive,” she explained.

Yoo also said that she is devoting her full energies to a campaign that emphasizes her advantages as the only one of the candidates who is currently serving as a trade minister.

“Many people have shared visions, but the important thing is the ability to make those visions a reality,” she stressed.

“I’m working on meeting directly with officials from over 120 countries to win their support,” she added.

On the question of whether she can also win Japanese support, Yoo said, “Japan is also a guardian of the multilateral trade system, and they place importance on whether a person is seen as being capable of reforming the WTO.” She added that she had “also met with the Japanese ambassador in Geneva while I’ve been here.” Remarking on the conflict between the US and China, she said, “If your question is whether I am ‘pro-China’ or ‘pro-US,’ my answer is that I am ‘pro-member countries.’”

“I see my experience negotiating directly with the US and China as something that will be a major asset in a situation of division like the current one,” she added.

The results of the first round of voting -- in which the number of candidates will be winnowed from eight to five – are set to be announced in mid-September. During the first round, each member country can vote for up to four candidates. Yoo explained, “I plan to visit the major countries again and actively campaign during the two weeks just before voting.”

By Lee Jae-yeon, staff reporter

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