摘要：2001年中國加入世界貿易組織時，專家們對中國加入世界貿易組織的前景充滿熱情，認為中國加入世界貿易組織將促進國際貿易，鼓勵中國向市場經濟轉型，約束國內法律制度，並加強中國的法治。然而，最近，人們對中國的法治記錄產生了嚴重的擔憂。川普政府2017年12月發布的第一份《國家安全戰略》報告聲稱，中國更多地參與自由主義國際經濟體系並沒有實現中國對法治的深入參與或尊重。本文旨在批判性地審視過去20年世界貿易組織對中國法治建設影響的兩種截然不同的說法。其結論是，雖然世界貿易組織在推進中國法治建設方面發揮了積極作用，但這種作用長期以來被誇大了。據此，我們對世界貿易組織為何未能在中國建立西方世界普遍期待的法治方面發揮催化劑作用進行了說明。
When China acceded to the World Trade Organization in 2001, pundits were enthusiastic about the prospect that China’s World Trade Organization membership would boost international trade, encourage China’s restructuring toward a market economy, discipline the domestic legal system, and strengthen the rule of law in China. More recently, however, serious concerns have been raised regarding China’s record on the rule of law. The first National Security Strategy report issued by the Trump Administration in December 2017 claimed that China’s increased participation in the liberal international economic system had not effectuated China’s deeper engagement with, or respect for, the rule of law.
The purpose of this article is to take a critical look at the two contrasting narratives on the impact of the World Trade Organization on China’s rule of law construction over the past two decades. It concludes that, although the World Trade Organization has played a positive role in advancing the rule of law in China, such a role has long been exaggerated. Accordingly, we provide an account of why the World Trade Organization has failed to play a catalyst role in instituting the rule of law in China widely expected in the western world