Switzerland has expressed concern over the future of the global trading system, warning that recent shifts in United States trade policy could weaken the foundations of the World Trade Organization.
Speaking on the sidelines of a WTO ministerial meeting in Yaounde, Cameroon, Switzerland’s State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Helene Budliger Artieda, said the government was closely monitoring developments that could undermine core WTO principles.
Budliger Artieda said Switzerland had a brief exchange with the United States Trade Representative, Jamieson Greer, but declined to provide details about the discussion.
At the centre of Switzerland’s concern is the Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) principle, a key rule within the World Trade Organization that requires member countries to extend any trade advantage offered to one trading partner to all others.
The principle is intended to prevent discrimination and promote fairness and predictability in global commerce.
However, Washington has recently called for a rethink of the MFN system. According to reports, the United States argues that the rule has become a “straitjacket” that locks in the current trade structure and allows some countries to benefit without offering equivalent concessions.
For Switzerland, the issue carries major economic implications. As one of the world’s most export-dependent economies, trade plays a central role in the country’s economic stability.
Data from the World Integrated Trade Solution show that exports of goods and services account for about 73 percent of Switzerland’s gross domestic product, making predictable and rules-based international trade essential for its economy.
Budliger Artieda stressed that the WTO remains critical for maintaining global trade standards, particularly for smaller economies that depend on fair rules to access international markets.
She warned that weakening these frameworks could disproportionately affect countries that rely heavily on exports and on the WTO’s dispute settlement system to resolve trade conflicts.
The debate comes as WTO members face rising protectionist measures and growing pressure to modernise trade rules to address digital commerce and evolving global supply chains.
Opening the ministerial meeting in Yaounde, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the WTO, said the global trading system is experiencing the “worst disruptions in the past 80 years.”
The meeting, which has brought together representatives from more than 160 countries, is expected to address divisions over trade policies and explore reforms aimed at restoring confidence in the multilateral trading system.
Switzerland has reaffirmed its support for efforts to strengthen the WTO and preserve a rules-based global trade order.
