Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Charles Michel, President of the European Union, said: “Today the world stands on a knife’s edge, war and conflict are piercing the heart of our multilateral system and our global trust. Russia’s war against Ukraine, the war in Gaza and the crisis in the Middle East, not to mention the terrible civil war in Sudan. These conflicts, and others, are creating a devastating cocktail of humanitarian disasters, destabilization and insecurity, pushing the world away from the rule of law towards the law of force. They have put our rules-based order to the test. We also see the devastating effects of climate change around the world, from Cyclone Yagi in Southeast Asia and the raging wildfires in Canada to the terrible flash floods in Spain. According to a statement in Brussels that included his speech at a presidential lecture for the World Trade Organization, adding: “We are also living an amazing revolution of artificial intelligence with its enormous potential for creativity and productivity, but also its risks for human rights, democracy and our global trading system. No single country, even the most powerful, can face all these challenges alone. We need cooperation and multilateralism more than ever. To make multilateralism work, we need three elements: trust, trade and transformation. We need to build more trust. People must be able to trust each other when they make agreements and work together. Building trust requires respect for international law, which is crucial when countries cooperate. We need trade because it generates prosperity and helps us achieve our shared goals. We also need to transform the world’s multilateral institutions, so that they are strong and fit for the present century. These three elements are precisely what we are trying to harness in the European Union. The EU is built on trust between member states, on our shared laws, values ​​and accountability. This trust allows us to cooperate and compromise on difficult issues that were previously taboo. Trade has been a cornerstone of our EU since the days of the European Coal and Steel Community, and the creation of our single market and customs union has eliminated trade barriers and allowed goods, services, people and capital to flow freely across borders. We have transformed Europe from a continent divided by war to one that works together across countless sectors.

We are building our European sovereignty brick by brick, reducing our overdependence on others and building mutually beneficial partnerships with the rest of the world. We want to build bridges, not barriers, and that requires more trust, more dialogue, more mutual understanding between countries and peoples, and less polarization that drives countries apart.

I am a firm believer in a multipolar world where each country, or group of countries, can chart its own course, respecting common rules. It should not be about choosing one side over the other. We need to listen, collaborate and formulate joint decisions based on smart compromise. We need to develop our collective intelligence to solve collective problems.
Just one recent example: the European Union, together with other regional blocs, played a crucial role in successfully negotiating the Charter for the Future in New York. It was not about ideology, nor North versus South or East versus West. It was about common sense, and the four corners of the world coming together for a win-win agreement. I hope this will set a good example for reforming our international financial system – the Bretton Woods institutions.

We need to make international finance fairer and more inclusive. The financial power of multilateral development banks – such as the World Bank – needs to be expanded. You can count on the EU to be a leader of change. We also need to help countries invest, by addressing the challenge of de-risking, which is one of the key priorities we need to work on in the future.

The world needs trust, and the world needs trade. That’s why we are so fortunate to have a natural trust builder like President Ngozi at the helm of the WTO. I want to commend you for your tireless efforts. I remember your decisive action during the Covid-19 pandemic, on vaccines and intellectual property, for example.

Today, a dark cloud of mistrust hangs over international cooperation. So I also want to commend your tireless determination to restore trust to the heart of the WTO. As President of the European Council, I know how difficult it is to make decisions with “only” 27 member states. So I do not underestimate the challenge you face in making decisions with more than 160 WTO members.

We must pursue the reforms necessary to make the WTO an effective force for the 21st century. These reforms are about rebuilding trust because trade is about trust. When people trade, they trust each other. When they trust each other, they build new businesses.

The EU supports strengthening the WTO. This is a strategic choice for the EU. A strong, well-functioning WTO is essential for fair and predictable global trade, based on common rules.

Trade is the engine of multilateralism. Trust is the fuel that powers the engine. Transformation is the movement towards our destination – an effective and modern multilateralism. So we must transform and reform our multilateral institutions, starting with the WTO. Reforming the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism – including an effective appeals process – is a top priority.

The EU and most G20 members support ambitious reform, while maintaining the core principles agreed in 1995, including the right of appeal to an impartial decision-making body. Time is running out. Let’s get it done.

We need to tackle unfair subsidies and state support and make the process more inclusive – developed and developing countries should have a say. We also need to modernise the system, so that it promotes cooperation rather than confrontation, interconnectedness rather than isolation, and rules rather than raw power.

The EU supports multilateral negotiations within the WTO because we believe they are an effective complement to multilateral negotiations. Multilateral negotiations foster innovation and allow countries to move forward on specific issues – such as digital trade or environmental goods. They also build trust and create momentum for future cooperation. A good example is the Investment Facilitation for Development, which 128 countries have agreed to.

Our rules-based system is much more than a technical framework. It is our collective, human vision for peace, stability and shared prosperity. As the world becomes increasingly divided into blocs, the multilateral trading system is a powerful anchor of stability and an engine of prosperity. Our multilateral trading system must be fair to countries large and small alike. Every country must have a fair chance to grow and prosper in the global economy. A level playing field is crucial to ensuring that common rules and standards apply to all. Our trade relations must be anchored in a spirit of cooperation and shared goals. Imposing values ​​or principles without dialogue does not and will never work. This is a recipe for mistrust and resistance. The EU’s deforestation law is an interesting example. “We have good intentions, but we have listened to our partners and decided to postpone the time for implementing this legislation.
After 10 years as a member of the European Council, I have learned at least three main lessons for the future. First, when regions cooperate more, the world cooperates more and this strengthens the United Nations and our multilateral system. In the European Union, we have tried to strengthen our relations with all the main regional organizations in recent years, such as the African Union, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, and the Gulf States.
Second, we must be true to our beliefs, always and everywhere. Double standards are poison in the bloodstream of international cooperation. The law is the law, and we must defend it wherever it is threatened. These laws must be decided by everyone, so that they are legitimate, and implemented by everyone, so that they are universal. No cherry-picking. The European Council fully supports UN Secretary-General António Guterres and the work of the United Nations. He is the guardian of our rules-based multilateral system, and calling him persona non grata is completely unacceptable.
Finally, the third lesson is the importance of trust. With more trust, we can prevent tensions and conflicts. With more confidence, we can solve problems and build future projects together. Rebuilding trust, boosting trade, and transforming our multilateral institutions – these are the three elements that make the world more peaceful and prosperous.