hankyoreh

South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee and former Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala during their announcements of their candidacy to become the next director-general of the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, on July 15 and 16. (Yonhap News)

South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee received fewer votes than Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, 66, former Nigerian finance minister and former managing director of the World Bank, in the final round of the selection process for the next director-general of the World Trade Organization. The final decision will be made on Nov. 9, after the WTO seeks to reach consensus among its 164 member states.

At 3 pm on Oct. 28, during a meeting of ambassadors from member states in Geneva, Switzerland, the WTO’s General Council reported that Ngozi had gotten more votes in the final round. The news appeared in a press release issued at midnight on Oct. 29 by South Korea’s Office of the Minister for Trade.

The General Council president also said the WTO will encourage member states to reach consensus on a single candidate, who can then be recommended and selected as the organization’s next director-general at a special session of the council on Nov. 9. While the WTO has released the results of its preference survey for the final two candidates, it hasn’t officially suggested reaching consensus on either of them.

At 11 am on Oct. 28 (7 pm Korean time), the General Council of the WTO called in the South Korean and Nigerian ambassadors in Geneva and informed them of the results of the preference survey it had conducted over the past few days with the WTO’s 164 member states. According to some reports in the foreign media, Okonjo-Iweala is supported by more than 100 member states. She is reportedly backed by the EU (27 countries) and most African countries (44).

At 3 pm on the same day, the General Council held an official meeting of all ambassadors in Geneva at which it announced the results of preference canvassing for the two candidates. While some countries wanted to propose that Okonjo-Iweala be named the consensus candidate, given her majority support, the meeting reportedly wrapped up without consensus being achieved. The WTO director-general is generally selected through consensus by all 164 member states.

It was not immediately known whether the General Council had recommended that Yoo Myung-hee, who received a smaller number of votes, voluntarily withdraw her candidacy to make Okonjo-Iweala director-general. After the preference results were announced late in the evening on Wednesday, officials from the Blue House, the Office of the Minister for Trade, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs convened late at night to deliberate their strategy for the coming days.

Reuters reported that the US announced during the meeting of WTO ambassadors in Geneva on Wednesday that it doesn’t support Okonjo-Iweala becoming the next WTO director-general. But it’s unclear whether the US will stick to its opposition against Okonjo-Iweala, considering that she has the support of a majority of member states.

Although Yoo received less support than her rival, there’s no telling how the final selection process will turn out over the next few days. Under WTO rules, a candidate that receives less preference in the survey is not required to immediately drop out of the race. Depending on how things play out, Yoo could either give up her candidacy or stay in the race, hoping that the US’ support and opposition to Okonjo-Iweala could bring about a miraculous turnaround in the deliberations with member states that represent the final stage in the process.

But if there’s a big gap in preference between the two candidates, Yoo may not find it easy to hold on much longer. Considering that the Trump administration has threatened to leave the WTO and undermined the multilateral order of free trade, some analysts think that other member states are unlikely to be won over by the US’ last-minute support for Yoo.

By Cho Kye-wan, staff reporter

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]