WTO warns against damaging EU-UK trade war when risks to growth are high

Boris Johnson says London could suspend the deal reached last year, triggering retaliatory tariffs

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  From left to right, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, France's President Emmanuel Macron, Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Queen Elizabeth II, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Italy's Prime Minister Mario Draghi, European Council President Charles Michel and US President Joe Biden pose for a group photograph during a reception on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Cornwall. Reuters

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  Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, US President Joe Biden, his wife Jill Biden and European Council President Charles Michel along with Britain's Queen Elizabeth attend a reception at the Eden Project in Cornwall. Reuters

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  Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson with his wife Carrie Johnson, right, along with Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles with Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Prince William with Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attend a reception in Cornwall. Reuters

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  President of the European Council Charles Michel, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, US President Joe Biden, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, chat at a drinks reception at The Eden Project. Getty Images

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  Queen Elizabeth II smiles as she meets people from communities across Cornwall during an event celebrating The Big Lunch initiative at the Eden Project during the G7 Summit. Getty Images

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  Queen Elizabeth II attends an event in celebration of The Big Lunch initiative at the Eden Project during the G7 Summit. Getty Images

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  German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her husband Joachim Sauer attend a drinks reception for Queen Elizabeth II and G7 leaders at the Eden Project during the G7 summit. Getty Images

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  Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, arrive for a drinks reception for G7 leaders at the Eden Project during the G7 summit. Getty Images

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  Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and wife Mariko Suga attend a reception for the G7 leaders at the Eden Project. AP

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  Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and wife Carrie Johnson arrive for a drinks reception during the G7 Summit. Getty Images

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  Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attends a reception for the G7 leaders at the Eden Project in Cornwall. AP

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  German Chancellor Angela Merkel and husband Joachim Saue attend a reception for the G7 leaders at the Eden Project in Cornwall. AP

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  French President Emmanuel Macron, Queen Elizabeth II, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and US President Joe Biden arrive at a drinks reception during the G7 Summit. Getty Images

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  Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson his wife Carrie Johnson share a joke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her husband Joachim Sauer during a reception for the G7 leaders at the Eden Project in Cornwall. AP

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  US President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrive at a drinks reception for Queen Elizabeth II and G7 leaders at the Eden Project during the G7 summit. Getty Images

World Trade Organisation head Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala warned on Saturday against a slide into a trade war between the UK and the EU.

Speaking on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Cornwall, Mrs Okonjo-Iweala said the world faced a surfeit of challenges without tensions between the European and Brexit Britain spilling into retaliatory measures. 
"I would really, really hope that a UK-EU trade war will not take place," the director-general said. 
"With all the opportunities there are for dialogue, I would be a little surprised if we ended up with a UK-EU trade war.

“It’s too costly for both sides. This is not what the world needs right now.”

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Saturday that he would suspend the Northern Ireland Protocol of the Brexit agreement with the EU as the two sides fight over how it has been implemented. He said London was ready to invoke the Article 16 clause pausing the deal.

"I think if the protocol continues to be applied in this way, then we will obviously not hesitate to invoke Article 16, as I have said before," he said.

Instead of spending billions on fighting the coronavirus outbreak, Mrs Okonjo-Iweala said the world had spend $26 trillion.

She called for the target in the 2021 vaccine rollout to be raised from 40 per cent of the world population to 60 per cent.

World Trade Organisation Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was in Cornwall to discuss coronavirus vaccines with G7 leaders. AFP

In the US, the Biden administration has joined a push supported by more than 100 countries to gain a intellectual property waiver for vaccine production.

Alongside investment in vaccine production in more countries, particularly those in Africa, the US wants to remove patent barriers.

Mrs Okonjo-Iweala called for a decision on the proposal by July.

"I hope the G7 leaders will continue along the path of the commitment to really reverse the inequity in access to vaccines," she said. "This is what is going to lift out the recovery and reduce the case rate."

Despite criticism that a pledge to donate vaccines to poor countries was not properly funded, she welcomed the moved to boost the Covax initiative for global vaccine distribution.

The G7 has said its members plan to accelerate the donation of about one billion vaccine doses.

"We've heard about donating vaccines, mostly to Covax, which is a wonderful promise. We hope this will happen fairly quickly because there are some countries that haven't even had one dose delivered," Mrs Okonjo-Iweala said.