The terms ‘Agreement on Agriculture’, ‘Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures’ and ‘Peace Clause’ appear in the news frequently in the context of the affairs of the

1. Food and Agriculture Organization
2. United Nations Framework Conference on Climate Change
3. World Trade Organization
4. United Nations Environment Programme

Explanation

Option (c) is correct

• The terms ‘Agreement on Agriculture’, ‘Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures’, and ‘Peace Clause’ appear in the news in the context of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
• Agreement on Agriculture:
  • The AoA aims to promote fair competition, reduce trade-distorting subsidies, and ensure market access for agricultural products. To achieve this, the AoA includes explicit commitments to decrease support and protection in domestic support, export subsidies, and increased market access.

• Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures:
  • The SPS Agreement explicitly permits governments to choose not to use international standards.
  • They should not arbitrarily discriminate between countries with identical or similar conditions.
  • Harmonisation: The SPS Agreement encourages governments to establish national SPS measures that are consistent with international standards, guidelines, and recommendations.
  • The WTO itself does not and will not develop such standards.
• Peace Clause:
  • Introduced under the AoA, it provides a temporary shield for certain agricultural subsidies from being challenged under WTO dispute mechanisms.
  • It was established during the WTO’s Bali Ministerial Conference in 2013.

Answer: (c) World Trade Organization; Difficulty Level: Easy