Containing Protectionism During the Crisis

Abstract

The article addresses the G20 compliance with its long-standing commitment to refrain from protectionist measures. The paper attempts to measure and compare the results of individual G20 members in different time-frames between the summits. The analysis is based on the data from the WTO reports on G20 trade and trade-related measures. The author believes that the effectiveness of G20 in this field of cooperation remains low, which is substantiated by a large number of protectionist measures adopted by the G20 members in the period between Washington summit in 2008 and Cannes summit in 2011.

The publication is prepared within the framework of a joint project "Enhancing Effectiveness of Russia’s Participation in G8, G20 and BRICS in Compliance with the Russian Federation National Priorities in Global Governance and Developing Recommendations for the Russian Presidency of G20 in 2013" implementing by Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) and International Organisations Research Institute (IORI) of the National Research University "Higher School of Economics" in 2012.

Keywords: G20; multilateral trade; resisting protectionism; WTO

JEL Classification: F5