U.S.-China Economic & Security Review Commission
Hearing on “China and the WTO: Compliance and Monitoring”
This morning we heard from Executive Branch officials who provided us with an overview of China’s WTO compliance record to date as well as U.S. Government efforts to monitor and enforce China’s compliance. We also had the opportunity to hear from legal experts intimately familiar with China’s WTO commitments, who were able to discuss the steps that China has taken to adhere to their commitments as well as the improvements that remain to be made.
We now welcome to our first afternoon panel four distinguished leaders of national organizations that represent different sectors of the American economy. They are: Robert Kapp, President of the U.S.-China Business Council; Richard Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO; Robert Vastine, President of the Coalition of Service Industries; and Robert Carlson, President of the North Dakota Farmer’s Union and here today also representing the National Farmer’s Union. Thank you all for your contribution to the work of our Commission.
Following this group of witnesses, our final panel will convene at about 3:20. The four panelists will be William Primosch, Director of International Business Policy for the National Association of Manufacturers; Eric Smith, President of the International Intellectual Property Alliance; Anne Craib, Director for International Trade and Government Affairs for the Semiconductor Industry Association; and Ann Wrobleski, International Vice-President of the American Forest and Paper Association.
These panelists will collectively provide a comprehensive view of the opportunities and concerns presented to American businesses, workers and farmers as a result of China’s accession to the WTO. Each represents individuals and companies who have dealt first-hand with these opportunities and concerns. It is, in the end, individual companies who know best the specifics of China’s adherence to WTO norms as well as the inconsistencies in China’s implementation of compliance-oriented reforms. It is individual companies, workers and farmers who know best the lost opportunities and adverse affects of China’s non-compliance, as well as the opportunities that can emerge from a burgeoning economic relationship aided by the lowering of Chinese import barriers.
We hope to gain from these panels an understanding of the specific concerns faced by workers, companies, and industries with respect to China’s WTO compliance. We also hope to distill from our discussion today some concrete proposals to ensure that the U.S. Government is responsive to such concerns, as it must be if we are to realize the full potential of China’s membership in the WTO.