Press Releases
Statement by Mr. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs, on the Issuance of the Appellate Body Report concerning “China — Measures Related to the Exportation of Rare Earths, Tungsten and Molybdenum” in the WTO Dispute Settlement Proceedings
1. On August 7 (same day local time), the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization (WTO) issued its report, upholding the Panel’s conclusions that China’s export restrains are inconsistent with the WTO Agreement and China must bring these measures into conformity with its obligations under the WTO Agreement in the dispute “China — Measures Related to the Exportation of Rare Earths, Tungsten and Molybdenum”, in which Japan, the United States, and the European Union had filed their complaints against the People’s Republic of China with respect to its export restrictions.
2. Japan highly values the issuance of the Appellate Body’s Report entirely supporting the Japan’s claims. Japan finds it deeply significant that the Appellate Body makes clear that export restrains of the imposed by China which would favor Chinese domestic industry for the use of exhaustible natural resources, cannot be justified, under the guise of protecting environment or conserving natural resources under the WTO rules.
3. As a result of this report, Japan calls for China to faithfully and promptly bring its WTO inconsistent measures into conformity with its WTO obligations under the WTO Agreement.