Contemporary Chinese Political Economy and Strategic Relations: An International Journal (Sep 2020)
China-U.S. Trade Friction under Trade Unilateralism and China’s Legal Responses
Abstract
Since the ascendance of Donald J. Trump to the U.S. Presidency, the Trump administration relies on the doctrine of unilateralism to implement the “America First” policy and initiate trade frictions with its major trading partners, particularly Mainland China (China). Against this backdrop, the article endeavors to offer an analytical framework for China’s legal responses to U.S. unilateralist trade policy. First, China should fully utilize the current World Trade Organization (WTO) rules to constrain unilateralist measures imposed by the U.S. Second, considering that the world economy is undergoing profound changes and the multilateral trading system is severely undermined by the rising unilateralism and protectionism, a scientific and reasonable proposal regarding WTO reform should be carried out by China and those WTO members supporting multilateralism and free trade. Third, it is clear that there will not be a once-for-all scheme to resolve the China-U.S. trade friction. Confronted with the severe challenge, it is therefore suggested that China should unswervingly promote its national economic strength through a new round of reform and opening-up with greater determination and efforts.
