Australia, the EU and the US all claimed victory on Tuesday after the WTO ruled in a dispute over protection of regional European food brands such as Parma ham or Roquefort cheese.
Canberra and Washington had complained to the WTO about a 1992 EU rule that protected 700 so-called "geographical indications," claiming they discriminated against imported products.
Releasing their ruling on Tuesday, WTO arbitrators said the EU system was too complex. But while it kept the protection system in place, it extended the right to non-EU countries.
The US claimed that by imposing the geographical indication in addition to normal trademark rules, the EU bars American brands such as Florida oranges from enjoying the same level of protection as, say, Madeira wine.
The EU said the ruling by the WTO disputes settlement panel "upholds the integrity of the EU system and rejects the majority of the claims made by the United States and Australia."
The US meanwhile praised the WTO for its "crystal clear" finding that the EU's system for classifying its foods hampered the chances of non-EU firms.
"It's a clear win for American farmers and food processors. For years, Europe effectively had a `Do Not Apply' sign directed at foreign producers," acting Trade Representative Peter Allgeier said.
"We believed that, under WTO rules, US farmers, ranchers and other food producers should have the same access to protection for `geographical indications' as European food producers, and that the European system discriminated against us," he said in a statement.
Australia meanwhile claimed the ruling went against the EU for not providing the same protection it claimed for its own products.
"The EU wants all WTO members to provide EU-style protection for geographic indications but the panel has found that the EU does not protect geographic indications from other WTO members," a statement by the Australian mission said.
There are about 700 registered geographic indications, or GIs, in Europe -- not counting those for wine and spirits, which have a different system of protection -- but Washington says none are from a non-EU country.
US President Donald Trump yesterday announced sweeping "reciprocal tariffs" on US trading partners, including a 32 percent tax on goods from Taiwan that is set to take effect on Wednesday. At a Rose Garden event, Trump declared a 10 percent baseline tax on imports from all countries, with the White House saying it would take effect on Saturday. Countries with larger trade surpluses with the US would face higher duties beginning on Wednesday, including Taiwan (32 percent), China (34 percent), Japan (24 percent), South Korea (25 percent), Vietnam (46 percent) and Thailand (36 percent). Canada and Mexico, the two largest US trading
AIR SUPPORT: The Ministry of National Defense thanked the US for the delivery, adding that it was an indicator of the White House’s commitment to the Taiwan Relations Act Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) and Representative to the US Alexander Yui on Friday attended a delivery ceremony for the first of Taiwan’s long-awaited 66 F-16C/D Block 70 jets at a Lockheed Martin Corp factory in Greenville, South Carolina. “We are so proud to be the global home of the F-16 and to support Taiwan’s air defense capabilities,” US Representative William Timmons wrote on X, alongside a photograph of Taiwanese and US officials at the event. The F-16C/D Block 70 jets Taiwan ordered have the same capabilities as aircraft that had been upgraded to F-16Vs. The batch of Lockheed Martin
GRIDLOCK: The National Fire Agency’s Special Search and Rescue team is on standby to travel to the countries to help out with the rescue effort A powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand yesterday, killing at least three people in Bangkok and burying dozens when a high-rise building under construction collapsed. Footage shared on social media from Myanmar’s second-largest city showed widespread destruction, raising fears that many were trapped under the rubble or killed. The magnitude 7.7 earthquake, with an epicenter near Mandalay in Myanmar, struck at midday and was followed by a strong magnitude 6.4 aftershock. The extent of death, injury and destruction — especially in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled at the best of times —
China's military today said it began joint army, navy and rocket force exercises around Taiwan to "serve as a stern warning and powerful deterrent against Taiwanese independence," calling President William Lai (賴清德) a "parasite." The exercises come after Lai called Beijing a "foreign hostile force" last month. More than 10 Chinese military ships approached close to Taiwan's 24 nautical mile (44.4km) contiguous zone this morning and Taiwan sent its own warships to respond, two senior Taiwanese officials said. Taiwan has not yet detected any live fire by the Chinese military so far, one of the officials said. The drills took place after US Secretary
RSS