successfully advocate for their own agendas, notably those regarding neoliberal
policy in the late 20th century (Gritsch, 2006). Neither the WTO as a whole or
more specific apertures, such as the Appellate Body, are free from this
intervention from their founding member. As of 2022, the Appellate Body is no
longer functioning, due to the 2019 AB crisis, wherein the US blocked the
selection of new judges to the board. These actions do not show a United States
whose capacity to act as the highest authority within its territory and jurisdiction
was hampered, rather, the opposite. Whilst the power imbalance regarding
globalisation has historically benefitted the West, China’s alleged recent actions
regarding the UN show that they are not the only countries attempting to
increase their autonomy and use the mechanisms of global institutions to exert
their sovereignty and achieve political goals – such as the acquisition of Chinese
dissident names from the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human
Rights (Samuel, 2021). Due to this influence, the westernisation hypothesis no
longer appears entirely relevant. The effects of these global institutions have not
always been negative for developing countries, either – rather, many newly
independent states in the phases of decolonisation in the 50s and 60s sought UN
recognition as a hallmark of their newly acquired sovereignty and autonomy
(Simpson, 1996). However, the disproportionate influence that richer states have
over such institutions in the modern day, means that the global South does
experience a loss of sovereignty through membership of these organisations. It
could, therefore, be reasonably stated that the ability of wealthier states to exert
influence through international institutions allows them to avoid any potential
degradation of sovereignty, whilst simultaneously aiding the decline of such
sovereignty in lower income countries.
Supra-national organisations also have a significant role in another aspect
of a globalised world; migration and borders. Borders are often considered the
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