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Commissioner’s Office: we welcome the WTO ruling and support Hong Kong to maintain its status as a separate customs territory
2022-12-21 23:07

The World Trade Organization (WTO) issued a report on the case filed by Hong Kong, China against the United States regarding certain measures concerning the origin marking requirement, ruling that the measures imposed by the United States on goods produced in Hong Kong are inconsistent with WTO rules, and refuted the US’ invocation of security exceptions. The spokesperson for the Commissioner’s Office of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the HKSAR welcomed the ruling and expressed support for the statement of the HKSAR Government.

The spokesperson pointed out that since 2020, the United States, in disregard of Hong Kong’s status as a separate customs territory, has put its domestic laws above international rules and laws of other countries, and unilaterally asked to change the origin marking of products imported from Hong Kong. This move, with the real intention to vilify “one country, two systems”, smacks of typical power politics and hegemony. The SAR’s filing of a lawsuit against the United States is an action of justice to safeguard the basic principles of international law and the multilateral trading system, and also a necessary measure to urge the United States to honor its international obligations.

The spokesperson said that the US side abuses the concept of national security by claiming that the “Hong Kong situation” poses a threat to its national security, and it deceives no one by inciting the security exceptions to sugarcoat its illegal moves. The WTO ruling fully proves that security exceptions are not an excuse for unilateral hegemonic acts. In the global order underpinned by international law, might doesn’t always make right, and the United States is no exception.

The spokesperson stressed that over the past 25 years since its return to the motherland, Hong Kong has maintained a high degree of freedom, openness, convenient linkages with the world and many other unique advantages. Hong Kong remains one of the most competitive economies in the world, and has made irreplaceable contributions to economic globalization. The status of Hong Kong as a free port and a separate customs territory is confirmed and protected by Hong Kong’s basic law and WTO agreements, and has long been recognized and respected worldwide. The status is not granted by the United States, and cannot be revoked by the United States at its will. The US side must stop undermining the multilateral trading system with unilateral bullying acts, and stop abusing the concept of national security with double standards. We urge the US side to earnestly abide by the WTO rules it participated in making, respect the WTO ruling, immediately correct its illegal acts, and return to true multilateralism at an early date.