Innovation and Improvement of RCEP International Trade Dispute Settlement Mechanism

On January 1, 2022, the “Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership” (RCEP) came into force. This agreement created a special International Trade Dispute Settlement Mechanism, which effectively broke through the current practical dilemma faced by the Dispute Settlement Mechanism of WTO while conforming to the development law of the free trade system. The dispute settlement mechanism of RCEP attaches greater importance to the role of consultation and the transparency of rules and procedures compared with other dispute settlement mechanisms such as WTO. It is more autonomous and efficient and shows sufficient modesty regarding jurisdictional conflicts. However, at the same time, this mechanism still has deficiencies in the rules regarding third-party participation, special and differential treatment rules, safeguard measures for dispute settlement and enforcement procedures, and dispute settlement mechanisms between investors and countries. It needs to be supplemented and improved to play its role better. Although the dispute resolution mechanism of RCEP is carried out within the framework of regional cooperation, it complements the multilateral free trade system and jointly promotes the development of the world economy in the direction of openness, cooperation, and win-win results.