U.S. calls WTO victory against Indonesia a ‘slam dunk’

A World Trade Organization dispute settlement panel has sided with the United States in a challenge to Indonesia’s range of trade restrictions on horticultural and animal products.    A World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement panel has sided with the United States in a challenge to Indonesia’s range of trade restrictions on horticultural and animal products.
   The United States, along with New Zealand, filed complaints against Indonesia in the WTO.
   “This is a slam dunk for American agriculture,” said U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a statement. “Since 2012, Indonesia has maintained an untenable import licensing program, harming the ability of U.S. producers to sell a wide range of American-grown products in the Indonesian market – from potatoes to beef to grapes to oranges to poultry.”
   The WTO panel agreed with the United States on 18 out of 18 claims that Indonesia is applying import restrictions and prohibitions that are inconsistent with WTO rules.
   Since 2012, Indonesia has maintained licensing rules for imports of horticultural and animal products. Indonesia has amended these rules several times, adding more requirements.
   The United States initiated a WTO dispute with Indonesia in January 2013 and, working together with New Zealand, filed additional complaints in August 2013 and May 2014 to address the modifications to Indonesia’s import licensing restrictions. The WTO Dispute Settlement Body established the panel for this dispute in May 2015.
   The WTO panel found that all of Indonesia’s import restricting measures for horticultural products and animal products are inconsistent with Article XI:1 of the GATT 1994.
   Some of Indonesia’s requirements include importing at least 80 percent of the quantity for each product specified on an importer’s license or risk penalties, and restrictions on imports of certain horticultural products during Indonesia’s harvest periods to avoid competition with those domestic products.
   “Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world and an increasingly important export market for many U.S. agricultural products, with exports of agricultural products affected by Indonesia’s import licensing regimes totaling nearly $115 million in 2015,” according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.