China: Most Favored Nation?

             Recently, China was again granted "Most Favored Nation" (MFN) status by the United States. This year, though, China was granted permanent MFN status by the U.S. contingent on when China is accepted into the World Trade Organization (WTO). This decision was, of course, very controversial. There are many reasons why the U.S. should not grant China MFN status or advocate its membership in the WTO. To explain, let's start with a brief history of the legislation dealing with China's MFN status. Beginning in 1934, MFN status, which lowers tariffs on imported products significantly, was generally granted to all trade partners of the U.S. as part of the statutory policy. In Sept, 1951, the Trade Agreements Extension Act made it obligatory for President Truman to suspend MFN status to the Soviet Union, and all other countries associated with the Sino-soviet bloc. In July, 1952, due to China's occupation of Tibet, its MFN status was suspended. At this time, the only way to have MFN status reinstated was by a specific law.
             This all changed in 1974 when the Trade Act of 1974 was passed. In this Act, Title IV set procedures for the attainment of MFN status. The procedure calls for a bilateral trade agreement between a country and the U.S. and that counties observance of the freedom-of- emigration requirements set up by the "Jackson-Vanik amendment." The Act also states that the President has to decide by early June whether to renew a MFN status for another year. Congress then must decide whether or not to support the President's decision.
             The Tiananmen Square massacre occurred on June 4, 1989. Hundreds of thousands of students were after the government ordered the army to fire on the crowd protesting Chinese politics. This incident and the repressive policies and violations of human rights by the Chinese government that followed it, caused the U.S. to rethink its MFN status policy with China. Attempts to take...

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China: Most Favored Nation?. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 00:35, July 01, 2025, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/61136.html