The World Trade Organization (WTO) should expel the United States to signal that its protectionist policies and weaponisation of trade are unacceptable, according to an academic speaking at the World Economic Forum’s Summer Davos.

“There is a danger in that protectionism is contagious,” said Kristen Hopewell, a professor at the University of British Columbia’s School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, during a panel session at the event in Dalian.

“If you allow the US to remain in the WTO while it’s blatantly violating the rules of the system, you’re undermining the system and you’re creating licence for other states to mimic that sort of behaviour.”

With the spread of protectionism and the Appellate Body of the WTO – which reviews panel reports on trade disputes – disabled since late 2019 as the US blocks the appointment of new judges, the multilateral trading system was in crisis, Hopewell said.

In April 2025 US President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on virtually all trading partners, citing emergency economic powers, but in February this year the US Supreme Court struck them down as unconstitutional.

Speaking on the sidelines after the panel session, Hopewell noted that there was very little international pushback against Trump’s aggressive trade policies, as many countries were economically dependent on the US and hesitant to retaliate.