The unilateral tariff policy of the United States has brought shocks to the world

The World Trade Organization held the first meeting of the General Council in 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland on the 18th. China took the initiative to set the agenda and expressed serious concerns about the unilateral tariff increase by the United States and its adverse effects at the meeting, demanding that the United States cancel the relevant practices and calling on all parties to take practical actions to maintain the rules-based multilateral trading system, which aroused strong resonance among all parties.

Li Chenggang, China’s permanent representative to the WTO, said that the United States unilaterally and arbitrarily imposed or threatened to impose tariffs on trading partners including China, bringing “tariff shocks” to the world. Li Chenggang pointed out that the unilateral approach of the United States blatantly violated the rules of the WTO, exacerbated economic uncertainty, disrupted global trade, and may even subvert the rules-based multilateral trading system. In this regard, China firmly opposes it and urges the United States to cancel its wrong practices.

More than 30 WTO members, including the European Union, Canada, Brazil, and Russia, spoke to express serious concerns about the unilateral approach of the United States. Joao Aguiar Machado, the EU’s permanent representative to the WTO, said that the multilateral trading system is currently under “attack” and the US’s announcement of a policy of imposing steel and aluminum tariffs and “reciprocal tariffs” is a step in the wrong direction. This approach is neither legal nor economically profitable.

Canada, New Zealand and Singapore called on the international community not to return to the era of power politics and the “law of the jungle”. Norway and Nicaragua said that the trade war and the uncertainty it caused will severely impact small and medium-sized members that rely on international trade. Brazil, Pakistan and other countries called for cherishing and maintaining the international economic governance system and the basic principle of most-favored-nation treatment established after World War II. Australia, Nigeria, Egypt and other countries called for restraint in taking unilateral measures that undermine the multilateral trading system. Many parties said that practical actions should be taken to strengthen the multilateral trading system.

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said that international trade is currently facing huge uncertainties and is at a turning point. Against this background, all parties should think calmly and strategically, make good use of the WTO platform to conduct contacts and dialogues, and avoid escalating trade frictions. The WTO Secretariat will soon release a new tariff and trade database and is willing to help all parties analyze the impact of tariff policies.