Abstract:
In the world of globalization, international trade is increasingly growing and there
are a lot of actors involved, not just states, so it will create more complex
conflicts. One of the most widely disputed commodities in international trade is
cotton. In 2002, Brazil filed a lawsuit against a domestic support program created
by the United States of America. In their claim, Brazil requested the help from the
World Trade Organization to resolve their cotton dispute. In the process, there are
several countries involved as third parties. The conflicted domestic support
programs made by US are Countercyclical Payment, Export Credit Guarantee,
Marketing Assistance Loan, and Step 2 Payments. In the end, those programs
have been proven guilty and the US made a one-time payment of $ 300 million to
Brazilian Cotton Institute as a form of compensation. This thesis was written
using qualitative methods in analyzing and summarizing the cases taken. In
addition, there is also a combination of descriptive research and analysis to find
out the facts as the main source of the process of writing this thesis. Therefore, the
result of this thesis shows the role of the WTO as one of the international
organizations can effectively help the settlement of disputes between countries,
especially in the trade sector.
