U.S.-China Economic & Security Review Commission
Hearing on “China and the WTO: Compliance and Monitoring”
Washington, DC
Good morning. Welcome to the US-China Economic & Security Review Commission’s sixth public hearing of the 108th Congress. Our topic today is China’s compliance with its obligations as a member of the World Trade Organization and the U.S. Government’s monitoring and enforcement efforts in this regard. The co-chairs for this hearing are Commissioners Patrick Mulloy and William Reinsch, who will describe today’s proceedings in greater detail, introduce panelists, and keep the discussion disciplined and focused.
Today’s hearing follows a very productive yet sobering field investigation that several Commissioners conducted last Friday in Columbia, South Carolina, to look at China’s impact on the U.S. manufacturing base. At that event, Senators Hollings and Graham spoke forcefully about the need for the U.S. Congress and Administration to address the challenges China is posing for our manufacturing sector. Their comments reflected the growing bipartisan concern in the Congress over the trade-related economic dislocations occurring in the U.S. economy. As a Commission tasked with assessing both the economic and security dimensions of our relationship with China, this is a key area for our deliberations.
In South Carolina we heard first hand about the problems faced by the textile, steel, and plastics industries and the impact on workers, businesses, and local communities. The dialogue that took place put the questions we study here in Washington into sharp relief. The written_testimonies we heard, one after the other, from various manufacturing sectors was troubling and requires urgent action Today we will be focusing on the broader issue of the promise and reality of China’s first two years as a member of the WTO. To what extent has it led to expanded export opportunities for U.S. goods and services? To what extent has it exacerbated imbalances in the trade relationship? To answer both questions it is imperative that we understand as an initial matter how well China has been adhering to its far-ranging commitments to the WTO and how well the U.S. and the WTO have been monitoring and enforcing compliance.
I should note that tomorrow the Commission will be holding a hearing on the subject of China’s military modernization and the cross-Strait military balance, a very timely topic given current tensions between China and Taiwan in the run-up to the Taiwan presidential election next month. Taken together, today’s and tomorrow’s hearing illustrate the broad set of inquiries our Commission is undertaking to gain a more holistic understanding of the U.S.-China relationship.