Study On The Illegality Of "Section 301" And Its Sanctions

In August 2017,the office of the US Trade Representative(USTR)launched a“301 investigation” against China.In June 2020,the office of the US Trade Representative(USTR)launched a “301 investigation” on the digital service tax of ten trading partners.The United States launched this series of “301 investigation”,mainly based on the “Section 301” of the United States.Specifically,the US“Section301” is derived from sections 301 to 310 of the US Trade Act 1974.The United States often takes“Section 301” as a heavy weapon to launch a trade war.Under the background of increasingly fierce Sino US trade frictions,the United States has frequently launched “301 investigation” and unilateral sanctions,which has brought various challenges to China,many other countries and the WTO mechanism.The use of“Section 301” by the United States has posed a threat to the orderly world trade system,which has also been widely condemned internationally.As the United States still has to play an important role in the multilateral trading system,the use of this unilateral tool by the United States has also attracted special attention.It can be seen that how to treat the use of“Section 301” by the United States is still a hot research topic.The purpose of this paper is to study the use of“Section 301” by the United States,explore China’s countermeasures when facing the “301 investigation”,use the rules of international law to safeguard its own rights and interests,improve China US trade relations,and promote the reform of WTO dispute settlement mechanism.This paper combines the relevant theories and cases of“Section 301”,combines theory with practice,discusses the illegality of unilateral sanctions by the United States under the WTO system,analyzes and explores China’s countermeasures,and combines the development trend of Sino US trade relations.At the same time,it has academic value and practical significance.The specific discussion of this paper is mainly carried out from the following four parts:The first chapter is the basic overview of“Section 301” in the United States.Firstly,it summarizes the legislative background and evolution process of American“Section 301”,and then summarizes the main content of American“Section 301”.According to the specific application of the clause,the“Section 301” of the United States can be divided into “General Section 301”,“Special Section 301” and “Super Section 301”,which reveals that the“Section 301” of the United States aims to safeguard the interests of the United States in economy and trade,and its main purpose is unilateral trade protection.The second chapter is the specific practice of the “301 investigation” in China.Firstly,it summarizes the main contents and influence of the “301 investigation” of the United States to China,and makes a substantive analysis.Then,it analyzes the main characteristics of the “301 investigation” of the United States,including its tough attitude of the United States towards China,obvious political tendency to China and attention to the field of intellectual property rights.Next,it continues to further analyze the main reasons for the “301 investigation” of the United States against China.The following chapter is regarding the illegality of the “301 investigation” of the United States against China.The illegality of the US “301 investigation” into China is essentially to explore the illegality of unilateral sanctions based on the “301investigation”.The illegality of the “301 investigation” of the United States against China is mainly embodied in the illegality of the principles of international law,the illegality of WTO law and the illegality of facts,which are further analyzed and discussed.The last chapter is China’s suggestions to deal with the “301 investigation” of the United States.On one hand,necessary countermeasures can be taken.Apart from that,making use of the WTO dispute settlement mechanism,we can not only use its consultation procedure,but also make rational use of relevant mechanisms such as“Interim appeal arbitration”.Finally,we can also learn much from the specific practices of other countries or regions.For instance,we can learn from the practice of the EU in dealing with the “301 investigation” of the United States,and also from the practice of Japan and other countries in dealing with the “301 investigation” of the United States.