TWENTY YEARS ON

'Pop! The gavel in the hands of an Arab official wearing a white robe fell and applause rang out on November 10, 2001, marking China's official accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) as its 143rd member. Looking back on this historic moment in Doha, capital of Qatar, Huo Jianguo, then a member of the Chinese delegation and now Vice Chairman of the China Society for World Trade Organization Studies, said his Chinese colleagues were excited but also breathed a sigh of relief.