India Seeks WTO Appellate Body Revival

Urging member countries to leverage the collective strength of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) for shared prosperity, India has highlighted the need for export diversification, reducing dependency, and

building resilient supply chains at the SCO Trade Ministers' meeting in Vladivostok. SCO accounts for 42% of the world's population and 17.2% of global trade.

Representing the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Additional Secretary with the Department of Commerce Amitabh Kumar emphasised the importance of coordinated action to enhance trade flows, address vulnerabilities, and support inclusive growth across the region.

Underlining the need for an open, fair, inclusive and non-discriminatory

multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core, Kumar highlighted the importance of a development-centred agenda that includes a permanent solution on Public Stockholding for food security purposes, effective Special and Differential Treatment for developing countries, and restoration of a fully functional two-tier WTO dispute settlement system.

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He underlined the role of services trade and the temporary movement of

skilled professionals, in line with national laws and transparency, to strengthen economic growth and support greater participation of MSMEs in global value chains.

India stressed on the importance of diversifying and de-risking supply and production chains through geographical spread, interoperable logistics, predictable market access, and enhanced connectivity, while upholding principles of national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The submission noted that persistent trade imbalances must be

addressed through better market access, cooperation on standards, and streamlined trade facilitation. India cautioned that export-related measures should not be weaponised or misused to create artificial scarcity, distort markets, or disrupt supply chains, and emphasised that their calibrated and transparent use is essential to maintain trust in international commerce.

On the digital economy, India proposed that SCO workstreams should be focused on fair, transparent and predictable regulatory frameworks, and

capacity-building for secure, innovation-led digitalisation.

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Showcasing its achievements in Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), including UPI for real-time payments, India Stack for identity and consent management, and ONDC for unbundled digital commerce, India presented these initiatives as low-cost, standard-based and replicable models to reduce MSME costs, expand access to markets, and enable real-time settlements, including through pilot projects among

trusted partners.

On sustainable development, India emphasised equity and the principle of 'Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities’. It highlighted the Mission Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) initiative and highlighted that climate action must be supported by finance and affordable technology flows. India also cautioned that trade-linked climate measures should not result in arbitrary or unjustified discrimination.

India spotlighted the animation, visual effects, gaming

and comics sector (AVGC) as an engine of employment, exports, and inclusive growth. It recalled its successful hosting of the first World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES 2025) earlier this year, which attracted participants from over 100 countries.

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The Summit catalysed multiple initiatives, including Waves Bazaar for global media collaboration, WaveX for creative start-up funding, and Creatosphere for talent development through the 'Create in

India' Challenge. Through the India Cine Hub, supported by simplified regulatory frameworks and 17 co-production agreements already in place, India is positioning itself as a global film production hub.

Thanking the Russian Presidency of the SCO Council of Heads of Government (Prime Ministers), India reaffirmed its commitment to collaborate under Tajikistan's Chairmanship of the SCO CHG in 2026-27 to promote sustainable and inclusive economic growth across the region.