Posted on 11/26/2004 4:10:22 PM PST by Brilliant
GENEVA (AP) -- The World Trade Organization on Friday approved sanctions on a wide range of American exports intended to punish the United States for failing to repeal what it considers protectionist legislation. The Bush administration indicated it would live with the new duties.
"It's been approved," said Amina C. Mohamed, Kenyan ambassador to the WTO and chairwoman of the organization's dispute settlement body.
The European Union and other plaintiffs sought formal WTO authorization to retaliate by imposing new duties against various U.S. products. Among the potential targets are cod, textiles, glassware, mobile homes and apples.
The WTO dispute settlement body had been scheduled to take the action Wednesday, but U.S. trade diplomats held last-minute talks with counterparts from the European Union and countries including Canada and India.
The move was believed to have followed wrangling after Washington requested fine-tuning of documents submitted to the WTO.
The 2000 law, named for Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., was written with the steel industry in mind. It was ruled illegal two years ago by the 148-nation WTO -- which referees global commerce -- following a complaint pressed by the EU.
The contested law allows American companies to receive proceeds from duties levied on foreign rivals for alleged "dumping" -- selling goods at below-market prices, making it impossible for American producers to compete.
The WTO backed claims that the amendment breaks trade laws by punishing exporters to the United States twice because they are first fined, and then those fines are passed on to their competitors.
"We are continuing to work with Congress to bring the U.S. into compliance and we are consulting with our trading partners on these efforts," Richard Mills, spokesman for U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick, said Friday. Officials already notified the WTO that "we intend to comply with our international obligations in this matter."
"It's important to remember that these issues do not affect the ability of the United States to continue enforcing our trade laws to make sure Americans are being treated fairly," Mills said after the new sanctions were approved.
In August, a WTO arbitrator approved penalties of up to 72 percent of the money collected from foreign exporters and handed to American companies and said the winners in the case should submit lists of potential targets. Under WTO rules, however, formal authorization must come from the dispute settlement body.
The EU was joined in its complaint by seven other countries: Brazil, Canada, Mexico, South Korea, Japan, India and Chile.
Only the EU, Japan, South Korea and India have so far submitted lists, but all except Chile requested formal authorization to retaliate -- and Canada has said it is pondering which products to target.
On Tuesday, new EU trade chief Peter Mandelson said the sanctions could be applied early next year.
Their value has yet to be determined, but trade officials have said they could amount to more than $150 million a year -- a tiny sum in comparison with the $2 billion in sanctions the EU threatened in its successful bid to force the United States to lift illegal tariffs on foreign steel last year.
Earlier this month, then-EU trade spokeswoman Arancha Gonzalez said the target list included "vocal U.S. sectors that could help Congress focus its mind on compliance."
Other products on the EU list include heavy machinery made by companies such as Caterpillar Inc., which is based in Illinois, the home state of House Speaker Dennis Hastert.
These people want us to go down. To hell with them.
I always thought we didn't have enough protectionism. Kudos to the administration. To heck with the WTO. Praise for the leftists who protest them.
The WTO is the largest fascist organization in the history of the world.
Are you f****n' kidding me? Thanks, NAFTA!
Sorry for the cursing. I think I accidently stuned myself with my beeber on that one. Ungrateful socialists.
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