US

The World Trade Organization (WTO) has finally resolved the dispute between the United States and Indonesia. The organization issued a ruling on the Indonesian claim that outlawing cigarettes made of cloves – also known as kretek – is a discriminatory practice, since menthol cigarettes that use mint as one of their flavoring components, have not been banned in the US and that the ban is unnecessary.
The WTO ruling was mixed, as the panel of judges issued their statement. One part of the ruling said that “the ban is inconsistent with the national-treatment obligation because it accords clove cigarettes less favorable treatment than that accorded to menthol-flavored cigarettes.”
However, the second part of the claim was rejected by the WTO, since the panel felt that Indonesia had failed to demonstrate how the ban was “more trade-restrictive than necessary to fulfill a legitimate objective” of reducing youth smoking.
In their report, the WTO judges stated: “The panel’s conclusion was based, in part, on its finding that there is extensive scientific evidence supporting the conclusion that banning clove and other flavored cigarettes could contribute to reducing youth smoking.”