A little news about the Appellate Body situation:
Taiwan's decision to block the appointment of a Chinese judge to the World Trade Organisation's top court threatens an institutional crisis, a key official warned.
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'I'm extremely concerned that if the situation persists much longer we will have a crisis in this organisation,' Bruce Gosper, chairman of the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body (DSB), told journalists.
Taiwan's objection meant Monday's meeting of the DSB was indefinitely postponed, leaving pending complaints on US agricultural subsidies and Chinese intellectual property restrictions in limbo.
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Gosper said he was planning to hold further talks with Taiwan and other parties in a bid to resolve the dispute.
More details, from Reuters:
WTO members other than Taiwan were unanimous at a meeting on Friday that the nomination of appeal judges should be kept on the agenda, ambassadors said.
And from the AP (through the IHT):
U.S. Ambassador Peter Allgeier, one of about 30 speakers Friday to urge Taiwan to drop its demands, said WTO rules already ensure impartiality and that the situation was becoming "very urgent." China, the EU, Japan and others made similar statements.
From Asia-Pacific News:
Taiwan stood up to some 30 countries to oppose the appointment of Chinese lawyer Zhang Yuejiao, the Central News Agency (CNA) said in dispatch from Geneva.
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... Taiwan argued that it had recently conferred with Gosper and WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy to find a solution. The consultations should continue and Taipei's objective was to ensure the credibility of WTO's Appellate Body.
IN THE comments, Henry Gao says: "According to some Chinese news source here, Taiwan has agreed to approve the appointment on a conditional basis after consulting with the Quad Members." He also points to an exhange on his blog related to some of these issues: http://wtoandchina.blogspot.com/2007/11/first-chinese-in-wto-appellate-body.html
