Conference Program

An inclusive trading system creating equal opportunities regardless of gender has become one of the major issues addressed by the WTO. The adoption of the Declaration on Trade and Women's Economic Empowerment is a sign of the increased interest in women's empowerment at the WTO. WTO and its member countries seem committed to increasing women's participation in trade. It is important, among other things, to exchange experience and best practices on inclusive trade policies. WTO initiatives for women's economic empowerment seem particularly relevant given the strong negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women's economic situation worldwide. The paper aims to answer the following questions: How to use trade policy to advance gender equality? What are the best practices to make inclusive trade a reality? How FTA’s could contribute to women’s economic empowerment?

The political decision to reduce barriers in international trade, driven by economic and security considerations, aimed to enrich nations, foster global cooperation, and reduce the risk of war. Cooperation and interdependence were supposed to foster change in the culture of dispute and crisis management and increase the costs of counter-system activities. However, this optimistic vision faced challenges on a global scale, with rising inequalities fueling protectionist arguments and Russia and China exploiting the WTO system for free-riding. Overdependence on global value chains became apparent, leading to possibility of blackmailing and security vulnerabilities, exemplified by Russia's aggression against Ukraine and China's policies towards its regional and global neighbors causing concerns among Western allies. The cooperation of Axis of Evil participants is deepening.

In response to the evolving geopolitical landscape, Western allies are adapting to a new Cold War reality through the concept of friendshoring. Moving beyond mere production and trade relationships, friendshoring emerges as a strategic tool to enhance the resilience of value chains against blackmail and other risks (de-risking). Moreover, it aligns with the goals of the New Washington Consensus. Notably, friendshoring is distinct from decoupling, emphasizing collaboration rather than isolation.

This paper investigates the economic dimensions of interdependence between the West and Russia, as well as China, employing the value-added perspective of Global Value Chains (GVC). Through this lens, the authors evaluate the extent of overdependence and assess progress in implementing friendshoring strategies.

In the dynamic landscape of the 21st century, global supply chains have undergone transformational changes propelled by forces such as globalization and regionalisation. While these shifts have ushered in progress, they have also laid bare vulnerabilities exacerbated by geopolitical tensions. Against this backdrop, India emerges as a potential powerhouse, capitalizing on its demographic dividend, cost-effective labor, and ambitious governmental initiatives. This dissertation explores India's strategic standing in the evolving global supply chain network, investigating its aspirations, challenges, and potential global significance.

Conducting a thorough analysis grounded in network theory and comparative case studies, the dissertation establishes a theoretical framework and reviews existing research on India's role in global supply chains. A comparative examination involving China, Mexico, and Vietnam is executed, unveiling their strengths, weaknesses, and strategies to attract foreign investment and diversify supply chains. Looking forward, the dissertation outlines India's strategic aspirations to emerge as a global supply chain hub. It analyzes initiatives aiming at driving economic growth and job creation, including Special Economic Zones, infrastructure development, and policy reforms. Acknowledging persistent barriers, the dissertation addresses critical challenges such as skill gaps, logistical infrastructure limitations, bureaucratic hurdles and proposing potential solutions,

In conclusion, the dissertation analyzes the pathways paving the way for India to carve its niche in the continually evolving economic order. India's strategic positioning in the global supply chain landscape not only promises economic growth but also signifies meaningful contributions to the global economic order in the years ahead.

The administration of Joe Biden adopted a package of legal acts (Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS and Science Act, Infrastructure and Jobs Act), creating a framework for national industrial policy. Its shape differs from the traditional model, as it combines the objectives of climate policy in the form of decarbonization and the objectives of industrial policy, i.e. increasing competitiveness and prosperity.

The new industrial strategy, can be considered as economic nationalism due to the strong support provided by the federal government to the domestic industry. At the national level it is intended overcome economic problems and the US's low competitiveness. In the international dimension, it is to pursue certain interests of the United States like an increase in competitiveness in the green technology industry, improve resilience and independence from global supply chains, gain stronger economic position against China as well as become a leader in combating climate change. That will enable United States creation a geo-economic space where modern American technologies, primarily in the field of energy transformation, will play a leading role.

The aim of this paper is to analyze international implications of the new industrial policy adopted by the Joe Biden administration in short and long term as well as indicate how the new model of this policy has wide-ranging goals also in the international arena and how it may affect the increase in international competition.

Recently, governments on both sides of the Atlantic have revitalized protectionist industrial policy strategies through regulative measures and large subsidies to pursue specific national goals such as energy transition, on-shoring of supply chains, regaining industrial capacity and controlling foreign investment. Examples comprise the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Chips and Science Act in the USA as well as the German government’s 2019 and 2023 industrial policy initiatives and the large subsidies and regulations for the German energy transition. These policies were pursued unilaterally without embedding them in common global-multilateral and European (in the case of Germany) agreements. The trend towards nation-centered economic policies („economic nationalism“) proritizes domestic material and ideational aims and groups over multilateral compromise. The paper aims at assessing the causes of these instances of nation-centred economic policies (NCP) in cross-country comparison with the societal approach to IPE by analysing the material interests of economic sectors, the ideational expectations of voters and domestic institutional advantages to explain governmental preferences. The paper also examines the character of the new policies and their domestic, European, and global-multilateral consequences.