29/01/2024 (Agence Europe) – The European Union submitted, on Thursday 25 January, a request to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to suspend the work of the arbitrators in its dispute with China, opened in January 2022 (see EUROPE 12878/4). The consultation phase did not lead to an amicable agreement during 2022, and the European Commission called for an arbitration panel to be set up by the end of 2022. It did not expect to publish its report before the second half of 2024. Meanwhile, Beijing has withdrawn the barriers it imposed on Lithuanian products at the end of 2023. The dispute is therefore no longer relevant. If a suspension lasts more than twelve months, it leads to closure of the dispute at the WTO. (LM)