A WTO case study on China - Measures Related to the Exportation of Various Raw Materials

• Main Authors: Bo-Jun Han, 韓博鈞
• Other Authors: 蘇宏達
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2013
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/58794616944505574054

碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 政治學研究所 === 101 === WTO dispute case, China – Measures Related to the Exportation of Various Raw Materials, was focused by the world because the restrictions on exporting various raw materials was seen as a China’s strategic method to against Japan. Besides, the critical debate which is between complainants and respondent and under WTO dispute system has highlighted the insufficiency of GATT/WTO rules on export restrictions. Finally, the case has also exposed that China’s accession protocol is lacking in defined legal relations with WTO agreements, as well as the huge controversy over the Panel and Appellate Body’s explanation of the meaning of treaties and sentences in GATT and accession protocol. This paper analyzes the dispute with three aspects: neoliberal institutionalism, Panel report and Appellate Body report, and the review of the position of China’s accession protocol in WTO rules over export restriction. The author introduced neoliberal institutionalism and used it to dissect the process and system for resolving quarrels of this case for a start, and confirmed its ideas and expectancy about the international institution such as WTO. Obviously, WTO dispute settlement reflects ideas and expectancy of the theory about the international institution such as WTO. However, if we ponder over the reasons behind the dispute settlement system and the resolving procedural, we can find that there is still room for considering reinforcing the explanation with the containment argument of neorealism. Before this case, there are few scholars or experts who had conducted systematized or thorough investigations into the export restrictions carried out by the members of WTO. Most of the studies were concentrated on the contentions of tariff or nontariff obstacles of import but export. Until the sovereign dispute between China and Japan was intensified by the Senkaku boat collision incident, major industrial countries such as United States and European Union had not paid attention to this kind of restrictions. The lawsuit instituted by United States, European Union, and Mexico was a strategic trial to ensure the supply of vital materials to these countries’ industrial development actually. In addition, owing to the undefined position of China’s accession protocol, controversial method of explanation by Panel and Appellate Body, and the original inadequacy of regulations about export restrictions in GATT/WTO, the measures related to export restrictions have been an emerging research field to international trade law studies. This paper outlines the theoretical implication for China – Raw Materials case and the limitation of WTO regulations. It is surely useful for readers to understand WTO dispute settlement and the GATT rules related to export measures. Furthermore, the author has inferred the judgment of the progressing case, China — Measures Related to the Exportation of Rare Earths, Tungsten and Molybdenum, based on the adjudication of China – Raw Materials case. After all, this paper can be a good threshold to comprehend this kind of subjects and the background of these disputes while China – Raw Materials case is regarded as a touchstone for WTO deliberate on the cases concerned with export restrictions.