China calls for opposition to unilateral tariffs, defense of multilateral trading system at WTO

China has called for opposition to unilateral tariff actions and the defense of the multilateral trading system at a two-day meeting of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) General Council, which concluded on Wednesday.

In a statement presented at the meeting, the Chinese delegation noted that global trade turbulence is intensifying, marked by rising uncertainty and increased risks of fragmentation.

In recent months, new unilateral tariff measures have continued to emerge, and the volume of trade affected by restrictive measures has reached 2.7 trillion U.S. dollars, the highest level since statistics became available in 2009, the delegation said.

Against this backdrop, the delegation called on WTO members to strengthen solidarity and cooperation, and to more effectively support the multilateral trading system.

The delegation elaborated on a three-pronged "SDR" framework previously proposed by China, namely "Stability as the cornerstone, Development as the priority, and Reform as the pathway," noting that the proposed efforts include jointly upholding WTO principles such as the most-favored-nation (MFN) treatment and non-discrimination, supporting the integration of developing members into the multilateral trading system, and advancing in-depth WTO reform.

The delegation stressed that bilateral agreements reached or related measures taken by relevant members to ease trade tensions must comply with WTO rules.

The delegation also suggested that the WTO Secretariat strengthen its monitoring and analysis of unilateral measures and bilateral agreements, and promptly inform members of their impact, especially the potential negative spillover effects on third-party members.

Brazil, the European Union, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Venezuela and other WTO members stated at the meeting that escalating trade turbulence is not in the common interest of members. Unilateral tariff measures, they noted, undermine the foundation of multilateral rules, significantly raise costs for businesses and consumers, and particularly hinder the economic growth and social development of vulnerable developing members.

Given the current circumstances, they emphasized that upholding the multilateral trading system has become more critical than ever.