China has acknowledged receiving an appeal from the European Union regarding an intellectual property rights arbitration case at the World Trade Organization, according to its commerce ministry.
It stated that China will address the issue in line with relevant WTO rules and procedures.
The ministry emphasized that the Multi-Party Interim Appeal Arbitration Arrangement is crucial for preserving the stability and predictability of the multilateral trading system.
It added that China remains committed to collaborating with other MPIA participants to ensure its effective implementation and to uphold the rules-based global trade framework.
On Tuesday, the European Union appealed a World Trade Organization panel report in its dispute with China concerning the enforcement of intellectual property rights.
In its report, the WTO panel supported the EU’s position, finding that China has established a policy of restricting intellectual property rights.
This policy, the panel noted, originates from guidelines issued by the Supreme People’s Court, is backed at the political level, and has been enforced through multiple judicial decisions.
However, the panel did not accept the EU’s interpretation of the TRIPS Agreement as obligating China to avoid adopting or maintaining measures that could undermine the implementation of the agreement by other WTO members within their own jurisdictions.
According to the panel, the TRIPS Agreement does not impose an obligation on WTO members to refrain from adopting measures that hinder other members from implementing the agreement within their own territories.
With this appeal, the European Union aims to overturn the panel’s latter findings in order to enable European companies to more effectively defend their intellectual property rights in European courts.
The outcome of the EU’s appeal is expected in the second half of July 2025.
