GD/18
Netherlands Action under Article XXIII:2 to Suspend Obligations to the United States
Other titles
US Suspension of Obligations (Source: GATT Analytical Index)
Products at Issue
| Products at issue |
Dairy products
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| Type of product |
Agricultural
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| Product sub-type |
Dairy products
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Related disputes
| GATT | |
| WTO |
Adjudicators
| Type | Working party 8 |
| Chairperson | Dr. Treu (Austria) |
| Other members | Representative of Austria, Representative of Brazil, Representative of Germany, Representative of Haiti, Representative of Burma, Representative of Sweden, Representative of Southern Rhodesia |
| Type | Working party 8 |
| Legal basis at issue |
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| Claims at issue |
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| Defences at issue |
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| No of Pages (total / legal reasoning) | 3 |
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Timeline
| Request for consultations | |
| Request for establishment | |
| Establishment | |
| Composition | |
| Report | |
| Adoption of report |
Outcome
| Outcome of the proceedings |
Report adopted
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| Additional Info | L/59 (06/11/1952) Draft Resolution [of the Contracting Parties] confirmed the findings made in resolution of 26/10/1951, and recommended the US "to continue its efforts to secure the repeal of Section 104 of the Defense Production Act as the only satisfactory solution to this problem (...)" The resolution supersedes the resolution on the same subject adopted by the Contracting Parties on 26/10/1951 during the Sixth Session. L/61 (07/11/1952) Working Party 8 on Netherlands Action under Article XXIII:2 - Report to the Contracting Parties: Draft Determination to authorise Netherlands to suspend the application of obligations under the GATT to the extent necessary to impose a limit of imports of wheat flour from the US during the calendar year 1953 with an upper limit of 60,000 metric tons. The Netherlands had proposed an upper limit of 57,000 metric tons (an annual reduction of 15,000 metric tons from the current rate of current imports from the US). The Working Party was of the view that the Netherlands proposal "could not be regarded as unreasonable" but "decided to recommend a measure somewhat different in magnitude". SR.7/16 (11/11/1952) Summary Record of the Sixteenth Meeting (08/11/1952): The Contracting Parties adopted resolution L/59 and adopted Working Party Report L/61 on Netherlands Action under Article XXIII:2 authorising the Netherlands to suspend the application of obligations under GATT towards the US to the extent necessary to allow the imposition of an upper limits of imports of wheat from the US (60 thousand metric tons during 1953). (Adoption of L/61 subject to reservations of New Zealand and Czechoslovakia and the abstention of the Netherlands and the US.) SR.7/16 (11/11/1952) Summary Record of the Sixteenth Meeting (08/11/1952) Adopted the resolution on US import restrictions on dairy products (L/59) which had been prepared to reflect the views expressed by the delegations at the 28/10/1952 meeting. The Contracting Parties adopted the report of the Working Party (L/61) . SR.7/17 (12/11/1952) Summary Record of the Seventeenth Meeting (10/11/1952) Closing statement by the Chairman of the Working Party: "In his view the test of appropriateness under Article XXIII was the different concept from mere reasonableness, in that account must be taken of the desirability of limiting such action to that best calculated in the circumstances to achieve the objective." G/44 (01/04/1953) United States Restrictions on Dairy Products - Communication from the US (25/03/1953) on changes made in its import control of dairy products. G/44/Add.1 (28/04/1953) United States Restrictions on Dairy Products - Addendum - Communication from the US (20/04/1953) on changes announced on the control of imports of dairy products. L/119 (09/09/1953) United States Restrictions on Dairy Products - Report by the US (August 1953) pursuant to the Resolution of 8 November 1952. L/154 (02/10/1953) United States Restrictions on Dairy Products - Resolution proposed for adoption by the Contracting Parties - Draft: import restrictions continue to be applied, the Contracting Parties indicate they continue to suffer serious damage, affirm the right to have recourse to Article XXIII, authorise the suspension of application of obligations under the GATT to the extent necessary to impose a limit of imports of wheat flour from the US during the calendar year 1954 with an upper limit of 60,000 metric tons. Requested the US to report, before the opening of the Ninth Session, on the action which it had taken. SR.8/14 (23/10/1953) Contracting Parties Eighth Session Summary Record of the Fourteenth Meeting (13/10/1953) Resolution (L/154) unanimously adopted with the abstention of the US. L/268 (03/11/1954) United States Restrictions on Dairy Products - Report by the US on action since the Eighth Session: "taken important steps directed towards the reduction of the maladjustment between the world dairy supply and commercial demand, which underlies this quota situation." SR.9/6 (05/11/1954) Contracting Parties Ninth Session Summary Record of the Sixth Meeting (04/11/1954) Netherlands requested authorisation to maintain its retaliatory measures. Chairman H.E. Mr. L. Dana Wilgress (Canada) to submit a proposed resolution. L/280 (11/11/1954) United States Import Restrictions on Dairy Products - Resolution of 5 November 1954 (proposed by Denmark) consider that US concessions have been impaired in the sense of GATT Article XXIII, authorise the suspension of application of obligations under the GATT to the extent necessary to impose a limit of imports of wheat flour from the US during the calendar year 1955 with an upper limit of 60,000 metric tons. Request the US to report, before the opening of the Tenth Session, on the action which it had taken. SR.9/7 (05/11/1954) Contracting Parties Ninth Session Summary Record of the Seventh Meeting (05/11/1954) Contracting Parties adopted Resolution L/280. L/315 (28/01/1955) United States Request for Waiver in Connection with Section 22 of the Agricultural Adjustment Act [also mentioned as W.9/315] US has system of price support for agricultural products (higher prices) which attracts a high volume of imports. Section 22 provides for limiting imports when they interfere with the agricultural programme - most measures justified under GATT Article XI, but there is a question "whether use which the United States Government might be required by law to make of Section 22 would in all cases be fully compatible with the Agreement." Waiver requested to regularize this situation. SR.9/32 (02/02/1955) Contracting Parties Ninth Session Summary Record of the Thirty-Second Meeting (31/01/1955) United States requested to add its request for a waiver L/315 to the agenda, request agreed to. SR.9/33 (07/02/1955) Contracting Parties Ninth Session Summary Record of the Thirty-Third Meeting (02/02/1955) Establishment of a Working Party to consider the US request. Membership: Chairman Mr. Max Suetens (Belgium); members: Australia, Canada, Cuba, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Turkey, South Africa, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay. Terms of reference: to examine the US request for a waiver and to report back to the Contracting Parties. L/339 (03/03/1955) Report of Working Party 6 on the United States Waiver: Draft Decision to waive the obligations under GATT Articles II and XI to the extent necessary to prevent a conflict in case of action required under Section 22. The Decision does not preclude the right of the Contracting Parties to have recourse to GATT XXIII. The CP will make an annual review of any action taken by the US under this Decision, and for each review the US will furnish a report of any modifications or removal of restrictions and why such restrictions continue to be applied "and any steps taken with a view to a solution of the problem of surpluses of agricultural commodities." SR.9/44 (15/03/1955) Contracting Parties Ninth Session Summary Record of the Forty-Fourth Meeting (05/03/1955) Waiver approved by 23 votes in favour, five against and five abstentions. L/339/Corr.1 (10/03/1955) Changes and corrections introduced to the Working Party Report L/399, as approved. L/443 (29/10/1955) United States Agricultural Adjustment Act - First Annual Report by the United States Government under the Decision of 5 March 1955 (October 1955) SR.10/9 (10/11/1955) Contracting Parties Tenth Session Summary Record of the Ninth Meeting (07/11/1954) United States Waiver - Agricultural Adjustment Act - US First Annual Report L/443 under the Decision of 5 March 1955 granting a waiver to the US in connexion to import restrictions imposed under Section 22 of the Agriculture Adjustment Act. Establishment of a Working Party: Chairman Mr. Koht (Norway), Membership: Australia, Canada, Ceylon, Cuba, Denmark, France, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States. Terms of reference: to examine the report L/433. SR.10/17 (07/12/1955) Contracting Parties Tenth Session Seventeenth Meeting (25/11/1955) United States Dairy Products: the Netherlands referred to the Resolution of 5 November 1954 (L/280 adopted in SR.9/7), the first part of which had been taken over by the waiver of 5 March 1955. The waiver explicitly did not preclude GATT Article XXIII, therefore Netherlands had requested the inclusion of the item in the agenda. The effect of the US restrictions remained substantially unchanged and the concessions granted by the US to the Netherlands remained impaired in the sense of GATT Article XXIII, and therefore requested an extension of the authorization to limit the imports of wheat flour from the US to 60,000 metric tons. The Contracting Parties agreed to refer the matter to the Working Party on the US Waiver. L/464 (30/11/1955) Waiver Granted to the United States in connexion with Import Restrictions imposed under Section 22 of the United States Agricultural Adjustment Act - Report of the Working Party: Recommended accepting the US report L/433 be accepted "as adequately meeting the requirement of a report from the United States under that Resolution [of 5 November 1954]." The Working Party also recommended that the Netherlands, having recourse to GATT Article XXIII, be authorized to suspend the application of its obligations to the US of its obligation under the GATT to the extent necessary to allow it to apply a limit of 60,000 metric tons of imports of wheat flour from the US during the calendar year 1956. SR.10/19 (12/12/1955) Contracting Parties Tenth Session Nineteenth Meeting (01/12/1955) Adoption of Working Party Report L/464 and authorized Netherlands to suspend the application of its obligations to the US of its obligation under the GATT to the extent necessary to allow it to apply a limit of 60,000 metric tons of imports of wheat flour from the US during the calendar year 1956. L/540 (10/10/1956) United States Agricultural Adjustment Act - Second Annual Report by the United States Government under the Decision of 5 March 1955 (October 1956) SR.11/10 (01/11/1956) Contracting Parties Eleventh Session Tenth Meeting (20/10/1956) The Contracting Parties referred the report from the US L/540 and the matter raised at the meeting by the Netherlands under GATT XXIII to extend the import limit of wheat flour from the US for another year. Membership: Chairman Mr. N.R. Bertram (Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland), members: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cuba, Denmark, Dominican Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, South Africa, United Kingdom, United States. L/590 (14/11/1956) Waiver Granted to the United States in connexion with Import Restrictions imposed under Section 22 of the United States Agricultural Adjustment Act - Report of the Working Party. Recommended authorizing the Netherlands to limit the import of wheat flour from the US for the calendar year 1957. SR.11/16 (26/11/1956) Contracting Parties Eleventh Session Sixteenth Meeting (16/11/1956) CP adopted the WP Report L/590 and authorized the Netherlands. L/687 (10/10/1957) United States Agricultural Adjustment Act - Third Annual Report by the United States Government under the Decision of 5 March 1955 L/711/Add.1 (22/10/1957) Request of the Netherlands to add to the agenda sub-item "United States import restrictions on dairy products". SR.12/4 (12/10/1957) Contracting Parties Twelfth Session Fourth Meeting (22/10/1957) The Netherlands on L/711/Add.1: impairment of concessions granted by the US to the Netherlands continued, in the sense of GATT Article XXIII, so requested an extension of the authorisation to limit imports of wheat flour. Contracting Parties agreed to refer the request to the Working Parties considering the agricultural waivers. L/754 (26/11/1957) United States Import Restrictions on Agricultural Products - Report by the Working Party on Agricultural Waivers. SR.12/19 (10/12/1957) Contracting Parties Twelfth Session Nineteenth Meeting (28/11/1957) Report of the Working Party (L/754) was adopted and the Netherlands was authorised to limit imports of wheat flour. L/862 (17/10/1958) United States Agricultural Adjustment Act - Fourth Annual Report by the United States Government under the Decision of 5 March 1955 SR.13/8 (30/10/1958) Contracting Parties Thirteenth Session Eighth Meeting (23/10/1958) Report L/862 was referred to a Working Party. The Netherlands requested the extension of the limit of imports of wheat flour from the US under GATT XXIII. The Contracting Parties referred it to the same Working Party. L/918 (19/11/1958) United States Import Restrictions on Agricultural Products - Report by the Working Party on Agricultural Waivers. Recommended that the Netherlands be authorised to suspend its application of GATT obligations to limit imports of wheat flour the calendar year of 1959. SR.13/18 (26/11/1958) Contracting Parties Thirteenth Session Eighteenth Meeting (20/11/1958) The Contracting Parties adopted the report and authorised the Netherlands to suspend the application of import limits. L/1048 (13/10/1959) United States Agricultural Adjustment Act - Fifth Annual Report by the United States Government under the Decision of 5 March 1955 SR.15/7 (05/11/1959) Contracting Parties Fifteenth Session Seventh Meeting (30/10/1959) US presented its Fifth Annual Report (L/1048) The Netherlands was encouraged by the US expectations to reduce its quantitative restrictions and decided not to seek from the Contracting Parties an extension of the retaliatory measures under GATT Article XXIII by limiting imports of wheat flour from the US to the Netherlands. L/1107 (18/11/1959) United States Import Restrictions on Agricultural Products - Report of the Working Party: Members of the Working Party stressed the need for greater progress in the coming years in the relaxation and removal of the restrictions. SR.15/16 (03/12/1959) Contracting Parties Fifteenth Session Sixteenth Meeting (19/11/1959) Adoption of the Working Party Report. Note: The US continued its annual reports until document L/7616 (31/01/1995) Thirty-Seventh Annual Report under the Decision of 5 March 1955 (09/01/1995) to cover the period October 1993 - September 1994. |