A BYD electric car factory in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, China, 14 November 2023. The European Union on 5 July placed provisional tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, which it says benefit from excessive and unfair state subsidies. (Keystone/EPA/Alex Plavevski)

WTO members to grill China over trade policies amid ratcheting tensions. Western countries are expected to call out China for continuing to use massive industrial subsidies and other state-led practices they say are undermining the global trade system at a meeting in Geneva this week.

Sudanese civilian figure on UN-brokered talks in Geneva: ‘There is no military solution to this conflict’. As the UN attempts to broker a deal for humanitarian aid in Sudan, Mohamed Salih Yassin, a Sudanese figure from the civilian coalition involved in peace efforts, is following the talks from the sidelines in Geneva. The longtime human rights advocate assesses the prospects of ending the conflict.

🦠ROUND 10. States are gathering this Tuesday and Wednesday for the first time since failing to agree on a pandemic treaty at the World Health Assembly in May. They have given themselves one more year to hash out a deal, but before digging into the content, countries will need to determine the form of the negotiations.

Who’s in charge? One of the first orders of business will be to decide who will head the talks from now on. The bureau, led by co-chairs Roland Driece from the Netherlands and South Africa’s Precious Matsoso, had been criticised in the past for its methods, prompting states to call for an overhaul of the modalities at the World Health Assembly.

The proposal on the table is to set up a rotation of leadership within the six-member bureau. While Drice is reportedly stepping down, Matsoso will be staying in place, something the African group was keen on. However, states are set to elect two new chairs.

No more secrets. Another crucial point that will be addressed is the participation of civil society groups, which have complained about being talks for the last two years not being transparent enough. Over 140 organisations published a letter last week urging states for more, including in the remainder of negotiations, a move that was backed by prominent political figures.

Among the proposals on the table is allowing certain groups to observe some closed-door meetings.

Save the date. While a lot is still up in the air, at least a schedule seems to have been already worked out, with two more rounds of talks planned for September and November, with the aim of calling for a special session to adopt the treaty by mid-December.

If that isn’t enough, two more meetings could be convened in December and February 2025.

📌 18 July | The (mis)use of uncrewed systems: exploring the benefits and risks. Uncrewed systems – on the ground, in the air and at sea – are increasingly being developed and used by a wide range of state and non-state actors in the military realm. This webinar will explore the benefits these systems offer, but also the threats to and impacts on regional and international peace.