bilateralism

According to J. G. Ruggie, "Multilateralism consists of coordinating national policies among groups of three or more states, whether through ad hoc arrangements or through international institutions." The United States was the driving force behind multilateralism during the Second World War, seeking mechanisms for the political resolution of conflicts. It promoted the creation of the Atlantic Charter (1941), the United Nations (1944), the Washington-based institutions—the IMF and the World Bank (1945)—and, later, the International Trade Organisation, known through its derivative, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT, 1947).