US is saboteur of multilateral trading system, expert in bullying: China

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Blaming Washington for sabotaging the international trading system and bullying, China on Thursday called on the US to abide by the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

“The US has become a saboteur of the multilateral trading system, manipulator applying double standards in industrial policies, disruptor of global industrial and supply chains and expert of unilateralism and bullying,” said Wang Wenbin, spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry.

Wang was responding to a closed-door review of the US trade policy at Geneva-based WTO on Wednesday where Beijing criticized Washington.

Beijing on Tuesday filed a complaint at the WTO against US unilateral curbs on chip exports.

According to a transcript of his daily news conference held in Beijing today, Wang said while the US on one hand calls for fair competition, “yet, on the other hand, has implemented massive discriminatory subsidies to keep domestic sectors ahead in the game.”

“The US refuses to implement a large number of dispute settlement rulings that have come into effect, and continues to impose large-scale unilateral high tariffs under domestic law,” he added.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry’s official charged Washington with “supply chain disruption and friend-shoring, abusing so-called ‘long-arm jurisdiction,’ and coercing other WTO members into acting under the US domestic law.”

However, Wang claimed: “More and more countries are saying no to US unilateralism and protectionism.”

“The world knows what is the right thing to do and is calling for it.

“The US needs to immediately mend its way, abide by WTO rules, take credible steps to defend the authority of the multilateral trading system, and return as soon as possible to the community of nations that uphold multilateralism,” Wang said.