According to the Government Communications Office (GCO) in Qatar, yesterday UAE made a request to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to refer, for a second time, a complaint it made about alleged Qatari restrictions on the import, distribution and sales of goods to a dispute-resolution panel.

The office noted, in a statement released today that the supply of goods from the UAE has been heavily restricted since the UAE, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt barred their suppliers from exporting to Qatar after blockading the country in June 2017.

The statement noted that Qatar pointed out at a previous meeting that the alleged Qatari restrictions did not exist, adding that Emirati exporters may be suffering because they cannot export to Qatar, but that the responsibility for that lies with the Emirati authorities export restrictions, rather than with any measures taken by Qatar.

"Qatar regrets that the UAE did not take the opportunity, at that time, to look at its own restrictive trade measures. Instead, it circulated media statements suggesting that Qatar 'confessed' that its instruments violated WTO rules. That was an unfortunate attempt to seize some small advantage in the UAE's continued media campaign against Qatar, and is like so much of the UAE's rhetoric concerning Qatar which is false," the statement said.

The GCO stressed that all Qatari actions taken concerning goods originating in the UAE have been, and remain, consistent with Qatar's WTO obligations. The office's statement also said that WTO rules allow measures aimed at protecting consumers, including through requiring accurate statements about goods, adopting requirements to ensure human health, product safety, food sanitation and to address environmental concerns, highlighting that Qatar has longstanding laws in these areas, and will continue to enforce them rigourously. (QNA)

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ILQ Staff

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