Washington: US President Donald Trump has said that India and China are no longer “growing nations”, claiming that they are “taking advantage” of the tag from the World Trade Organization (WTO) and warned that he will not let it happen anymore.
“They (WTO) view certain countries like China, India… as growing nations. Well, they have grown, and they had tremendous advantages… We’re not letting that happen anymore…Everybody is growing but us,” said Trump at a campaign rally in Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
They (India and China) were taking advantage of a developing nation tag from the WTO, putting the US to disadvantage, he said at the rally.
The WTO is an intergovernmental organisation that regulates international trade between nations.
The White House pointed out in a memorandum that China and many other countries continue to style themselves as developing countries “allowing them to enjoy the benefits that come with that status and seek weaker commitments than those made by other WTO members”, media reports said.
Trump said the US does not need the WTO if the Geneva-based organization fails to address loopholes that favour certain nations.
Shortly after issuing the memorandum, Trump said in a statement that the WTO was “broken” as “the world’s richest countries” claim to be developing countries and get special treatment to avoid WTO rules, reports say.
China, with whom the US is engaged in a bruising trade war, has been identified by Washington as the “most significant abuser” of WTO regulations. Since joining the WTO, China has insisted that it is a developing country, according to the memorandum.
