EU VS China in WTO
2022.12.07 06:09
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EU VS China in WTO
Budrigannews.com – The next step in two trade disputes with China that failed to be resolved bilaterally was the announcement on Wednesday by the European Commission that it had requested the establishment of adjudicating panels at the World Trade Organization.
Chinese alleged restrictions on EU companies’ rights to use foreign courts to protect their high-tech patents and on trade with Lithuania, both of which were brought to the WTO at the beginning of the year, are the subject of the disputes.
The EU executive, which is in charge of trade policy for the 27-member European Union, said that both sets of measures were very bad for businesses in Europe. The ones against Lithuania broke supply chains and trade within the EU.
The initial step in a WTO challenge was the Commission’s formal request for consultations with China at the WTO. Such conferences seldom settle debates.
Despite the fact that panel proceedings can last up to one and a half years, the EU executive stated that the WTO panels would most likely be formed early in 2023.
A statement issued by the commerce ministry said that China would handle the EU’s request for trade disputes in accordance with the WTO’s dispute settlement procedure.
The panel’s requests come as the European Union reconsiders how it views China, which it views more as a system rival and competitor than as a partner. EU leaders have also expressed concern about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine’s economic reliance on China, which has taken a more neutral stance on the conflict.
The US and the EU held the third ecclesiastical level gathering on Monday of their Exchange and Innovation Committee (TTC), intended to upgrade administrative collaboration and present a unified front against China.
The timing of the requests, according to an EU official, was not related to the TTC but rather reflected the work required to construct both cases. Many of China’s actions in the Lithuania case were not published measures, which are typically the subject of WTO litigation.
The downgrading of diplomatic ties between China and Lithuania beginning in December 2021 and the pressure placed on multinational corporations to cut ties with the 2.8 million-person Baltic nation following Taiwan’s de facto embassy opening in Vilnius are two of the contentions.
According to the Commission, China had also imposed import restrictions on alcohol, beef, dairy, logs, and peat shipped from Lithuania based on rules governing food and plant safety without demonstrating that the restrictions were justified.
In the other case, the Commission stated that Chinese courts had issued “anti-suit injunctions” since August 2020 that prevented European companies from seeking redress in non-Chinese courts, such as EU courts, for standard-essential patents.
According to the Commission, Chinese manufacturers made use of the injunctions to get patent owners to give them cheaper access to technology from Europe.
