On October 30, 2020, Hong Kong, China requested consultations with the United States regarding certain measures concerning the origin marking requirement applicable to goods produced in Hong Kong, China.
Hong Kong, China claimed that measures appear to be inconsistent with:
- Articles I:1, IX:1 and X:3(a) of the GATT 1994;
- Articles 2(c), 2(d) and 2(e) of the Agreement on Rules of Origin; and
- Article 2.1 of the TBT Agreement.
On November 9, 2020, the United States requested the Chair of the DSB to circulate to Members a communication where it indicated that the United States was willing to enter into consultations with Hong Kong, China, without prejudice to the US view that the measures imposed by the United States concern issues of national security not susceptible to review or capable of resolution by WTO dispute settlement.
On November 13, 2020, the Russian Federation requested to join the consultations. On November 19, 2020, the United States requested the Chair of the DSB to circulate to Members a communication where it rejected the Russian Federation's request to join the consultations.
On January 14, 2021, Hong Kong, China requested the establishment of a panel. At its meeting on January 25, 2021, the DSB deferred the establishment of a panel.
At its meeting on February 22, 2021, the DSB established a panel. Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, India, Japan, Korea, Norway, the Russian Federation, Singapore, Switzerland, Turkey and Ukraine reserved their third-party rights.
