The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world and sometimes as the European Community even before being renamed in 1993) was an international organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957. Its aim was to achieve economic integration, including a common market, among its six founding members: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The WTO also mediates trade disputes between member countries. If the government of one country accuses the government of another country of violating the rules of world trade, a WTO panel decides the dispute. (The panel`s decision may be appealed to an appellate body.) If the WTO finds that the government of a member State has not complied with the agreements it has signed, the member is required to change its policy and bring them into line with the rules. If the Member considers that it is politically impossible to change its policy, it may offer other countries compensation in the form of lower trade barriers for other products. If it decides not to do so, other countries may obtain wto authorization to impose higher tariffs (i.e. retaliatory measures) on products originating in the Member State concerned for its non-compliance. Trade agreements are usually unilateral, bilateral or multilateral. Trade agreements that the WTO refers to as preferential are also called regional “RTAs”, although they are not necessarily concluded by countries in a given region. As of July 2007, 205 agreements are currently in force. More than 300 have been notified to the WTO. [10] The number of free trade agreements has increased considerably over the past decade.
