Explainer-Ousting Russia from WTO, IMF would mark end of an era

FILE PHOTO: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) logo is seen outside the headquarters building in Washington, U.S., September 4, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Amid the devastation of World War Two, the United States and its allies created the institutions that have governed the post-war global economic order, focused on rebuilding Europe, fighting poverty and bringing rivals together to work out trade disputes peacefully.

But as the first major European war since 1945 rages, some Western countries are discussing strategies to oust Russia from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Bank and other development lenders as punishment for its invasion of Ukraine.