The Chamber of Deputies approved this ThursdayThis Tuesday (19) the provisional measure (MP) authorizing the Foreign Trade Chamber (Camex) to apply unilateral trade sanctions to countries that fail to comply with World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements. The MP goes to the Senate.
When editing the measure in January this year, the government argued that the authorization was motivated by the paralysis of the WTO Appellate Body, which has dragged on since December 2020. Since then, the appointment of judges to the body has been blocked by the United States.
For the government, the MP aims to address the fact that countries are taking advantage of the appellate body’s stoppage to postpone sanctions indefinitely. With the MP, the Presidency of the Republic will be able to put into practice favorable decisions already obtained in the WTO, but which have not yet been implemented due to the resources presented.
“In order to put into practice the decisions favorable to Brazil, it is intended to adopt the Foreign Trade Chamber with explicit competence to suspend concessions and other obligations in retaliation to WTO members who make use of appeals addressed to the appellate body” , justifies the government.
The text of the MP provides that Camex may suspend concessions or other obligations of Brazil when there is authorization from the Dispute Settlement Body (DSC) or if there is an unjudged appeal against the panel’s decision. The decisions will be temporary while the authorization of the CSO lasts or while the appellate body does not function.
Camex must wait 60 days after the notification of the intention to apply unilateral sanctions for Brazil to try new negotiations with the countries involved in the dispute.
The measure also establishes that concessions or other obligations may not be suspended in an amount greater than the cancellation or damage caused to the commercial benefits of Brazil by the other country. The rules will also apply to the law dealing with intellectual property rights.
