WTO Dispute Settlement Proceedings Regarding Measures of the European Communities Affecting the Approval and Marketing of Biotech Products

Resumo

The Office of the United States Trade Representative ("USTR") is providing notice that on January 17, 2008, the United States submitted to the World Trade Organization ("WTO") a request for authorization to suspend WTO concessions and other obligations with respect to the European Communities ("EC") in an amount equal to the level of nullification and impairment resulting from EC non-compliance with the WTO recommendations and rulings. Under a sequencing agreement with the EC, that request will be referred to arbitration and the arbitration will be suspended while the United States and EC continue to try to resolve this dispute and related matters. To prepare for the possibility that the arbitration is resumed and the WTO Dispute Settlement Body ("DSB") authorizes the United States to suspend WTO concessions with respect to the EC, USTR is inviting written comments on action that USTR should take to exercise such an authorization. In particular, USTR seeks written comments with respect to the specific products of the EC or EC member States, and/or with respect to the specific member States of the EC, that should be subject to a suspension of WTO concessions, such as through increas