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The First Trump Trade Deal: The KORUS Renegotiation May Be Complete

Unlike NAFTA, the KORUS FTA renegotiation was not a complete overhaul, but more of a "refurbishing" of the agreement (as Ambassador Lighthizer put it the other day), one that was designed to avoid Congressional oversight. There are reports out now that the KORUS talks are complete, with what
Simon Lester 26 Mar 2018 2 min read

The Section 232 Tariffs in U.S. Court

The first challenge to the Section 232 steel/aluminum tariffs has been filed (thanks to Larry Friedman for the tip). This is an excerpt from the complaint: Accordingly, Plaintiffs Severstal Export GmbH ("SSE") and Severstal Export Miami Corporation ("SSE M ") (collectively, "Plaintiffs"), by and
Simon Lester 25 Mar 2018 2 min read

Lighthizer on a Sunset Clause in NAFTA

Here is another interesting issue that came up at last week's House Ways and Means Committee hearing with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer: Congressman Johnson: Can you tell me what the sunset clause is and what they are trying to accomplish with it? Ambassador Lighthizer: Absolutely, Congressman.
Simon Lester 25 Mar 2018 2 min read

Do investment treaties de-politicize investment disputes?

When I hear people claim that ISDS/investment protection "de-politicizes" investment disputes, in the sense that governments can avoid the unpleasant task of espousing diplomatic claims against other governments, I usually respond by pointing out that ISDS claims create political controversy of another kind, so at best the
Simon Lester 25 Mar 2018 3 min read

Are the Section 232 Steel Tariffs Unconstitutional?

Here is the link to the March 15 podcast by Tim Meyer, Jeff Rosen, and discussing the issue of whether Section 232 violates the US Constitution. https://constitutioncenter.org/debate/podcasts/trump-tariffs-and-trade
Charnovitz 22 Mar 2018 1 min read

Brady-Lighthizer ISDS Exchange

Congressman Kevin Brady and U.S. Trade Rep. Robert Lighthizer had a good exchange today on ISDS at a House Ways and Means hearing. Here is a messy transcript (hopefully it is mostly accurate): Brady: You know I'm confident you and your team are going to negotiate a
Simon Lester 21 Mar 2018 5 min read

"Regulatory Chill" in NAFTA

This is from the NY Times: The contentious negotiations over the fate of the North American Free Trade Agreement have veered into one of the world’s most pressing health issues: fighting obesity. Urged on by big American food and soft-drink companies, the Trump administration is using the trade talks
Simon Lester 21 Mar 2018 2 min read

Litigating GATT Article XXI: The U.S. View of the Scope of the Exception

The U.S. submissions in the Russia - Traffic in Transit case are now available here. Here's an excerpt from the third party oral statement: III. The Text of Article XXI, in its Context, Establishes That the Exception Is Self-Judging 11. Article XXI of the GATT 1994, in
Simon Lester 19 Mar 2018 2 min read

Litigating GATT Article XXI: The EU's View of the Scope of the Exception

A clarification of the scope of the GATT Article XXI security exception may come sooner than expected, as Russia has invoked Article XXI(b)(iii) in the Russia - Traffic in Transit (DS512) dispute. The EU's third party submissions are now online: Third party written submission and third
Simon Lester 17 Mar 2018 1 min read

The Drafting History of GATT Article XXI: Where Did "Considers" Come From?

In my last post, I highlighted the comments of John Leddy, a U.S. delegate to the GATT negotiations, on the meaning and scope of the GATT security exception. But you probably noticed that the version under discussion as part of the New York draft does not have the crucial
Simon Lester 13 Mar 2018 3 min read

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Can "Geopolitical" Tariffs Be Dealt With through Trade Deals?

Last Friday, U.S. Trade Rep. Jamieson Greer was asked about Trump's initial suggestion of tariffs related to the goal of taking over Greenland
20 Jan 2026 4 min read

Is Foreign Antitrust Enforcement "Discriminatory" and "Anti-American"?

The House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust held a hearing in December on "Anti-American Antitrust: How Foreign Governments Target U.S. Businesses." There was a lot of talk at the hearing about how foreign regulations and regulators "discriminate" against American companies.
05 Jan 2026 5 min read

Pennsylvania Court Finds Mexican Government Guilty of "Discrimination" Due To Its Subsidies

I'm always interested in how courts apply the concept of "discrimination" in the context of international trade, so I've been eagerly awaiting a Pennsylvania court decision in a case against Mexico.
12 Dec 2025 8 min read

Economic Security in Trade Agreements: My Response to Geoff Gertz

Thanks to Geoff for laying out his vision of why economic security should be in trade agreements and how to bring it in. It won't surprise anyone to hear I have some additional comments and questions in response!
04 Dec 2025 10 min read

Guest Post: The Case for Bringing Economic Security Priorities into U.S. Trade Agreements, Part II

This is a guest post from Geoffrey Gertz of the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), responding to my post on Economic and National Security Provisions in U.S. Trade Agreements An earlier post made the case for why the United States should bring economic security commitments into trade
01 Dec 2025 3 min read

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