China's Accession to the WTO

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is a permanent international organization independent of the UN. It started operating on January 1, 1995, and is responsible for maintaining world economic and trade order. Its predecessor was the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that was established in 1947.

For historical reasons, the People's Republic of China did not join GATT after it was founded in 1949. The Chinese government formally applied to GATT on July 10, 1986 to have its status as a contracting party restored. On June 3, 1995, China became an observer country of the WTO. On November 10, 2001, the protocol on China's WTO entry was approved at the Fourth WTO Ministerial Meeting held in Doha, capital of Qatar. On December 11, China formally joined the WTO and became its 143rd member. This was a new step in China's opening to the rest of the world.

China's entry to the WTO was in alignment with economic globalization and reflected its willingness to join international competition and cooperation. It also marked a step by the WTO toward a global trade organization, and exerted great influence on China's economic structural reform and economic development.

Since then, China has further integrated with and become an irreplaceable force in the international economy, while benefiting from globalization. "Mutually beneficial" is an accurate description of China's relationship with the rest of the world. China firmly supports multilateral trade systems. It will always be a responsible WTO member and make a positive contribution to multilateral trade systems.

加入世界貿易組織

世界貿易組織是一個獨立于聯合國的永久性國際組織，于1995年1月1日正式開始運作，負責管理世界經濟和貿易秩序。其前身是1947年成立的關稅及貿易總協定。由于歷史原因，新中國成立后的一段時間內，中國沒有參加關貿總協定。改革開放以后，為適應形勢發展的需要，1986年7月10日，中國政府正式提出關于恢復中國在關貿總協定締約國地位的申請。1995年6月3日，中國成為世貿組織觀察員。2001年11月10日，在卡塔爾首都多哈舉行的世界貿易組織第四屆部長級會議通過了中國加入世界貿易組織的法律文件。同年12月11日，中國正式成為世貿組織第143個成員，標志著中國對外開放事業進入一個新的階段。

中國加入世界貿易組織，充分展示了順應經濟全球化潮流、主動參與國際競爭與合作的積極姿態，推動世界貿易組織在真正成為全球性貿易組織上邁出一大步，對中國的經濟體制改革和經濟發展產生了重大影響。加入世貿組織以來，中國在不斷受益于全球化發展的同時，也更加深入地融入世界經濟，成為促進世界經濟發展不可缺少的重要力量。互利共贏，是對這些年來中國與世界關系變化的準確描述。中國是多邊貿易體制堅定的支持者，將一如既往做負責任的世界貿易組織成員，積極參與多邊貿易體制建設。