US trade bullyism shakes foundations of global multilateral trading regime: white paper

BEIJING -- The trade bullyism practices of the United States have shaken the foundations of the global multilateral trading regime, which will ultimately hurt its long-term interests, said a white paper published by the Chinese government Monday.

The new US administration has practiced unilateralism and economic hegemony with a narrow focus on "America First" since taking office, said the white paper, titled "The Facts and China's Position on China-US Trade Friction".

This has not only undermined the interests of China and other countries, but also jeopardized the international reputation of the United States itself, the white paper said.

The United States unilaterally provokes trade friction on the pretext of its domestic law, said the white paper.

It said the United States, citing industrial injuries and protection of intellectual property rights, regularly circumvented the dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and provoked international trade friction merely using US domestic law as a pretext, initiating a host of investigations under the auspices of Section 232, Section 201 and Section 301.

"Such unilateralist actions have harmed the interests of China and other WTO members. More importantly, they have undermined the authority of the WTO and its dispute settlement system," the white paper said.

The United States has been making baseless accusations against other countries' industrial policies, according to the white paper. "As an effective tool to remedy market failures and improve social welfare, industrial policies should not be subject to groundless accusations as long as they are consistent with WTO rules," it said.

According to the white paper, to strengthen its global leadership in manufacturing, the United States has in recent years formulated a large number of industrial policies, but at the same time it has made unwarranted accusations against other countries' justified industrial policies.

The white paper notes that the United States uses "long-arm jurisdiction" and imposes sanctions against other countries based on US domestic laws, adding that it has been extending its "long-arm jurisdiction" to wider areas including civil torts, financial investment, anti-monopoly, export control and cybersecurity in recent years.