The US has told the World Trade Organization that the decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum was taken on the basis of national security and should not be considered a step taken to protect the interests of industries i.e. a safeguard measure. The US has clarified its stand before the World Trade Organization (WTO) after India on April 11 requested for consultations under the WTO’s safeguard agreement with the US.
India had said that despite America terming these measures as security measures, these are basically steps taken in the interests of industries. This resulted in the US failing to inform the WTO Safeguards Committee under a provision of the Agreement on Safeguards (AOS) about its decision to impose these measures.
The US, in a letter sent to the WTO on April 17, said it finds that India’s request for consultation under Article 12.3 of the Agreement on Safeguard Measures is based on the grounds that the duty measures are in the interests of the industry. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum under Section 232. Under this, the President determined that tariffs are necessary to accommodate imports of steel and aluminum goods that threaten the national security of the United States.
The US said Section 232 is a national security law and the tariffs are being placed under a security exception under a provision of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994. It said that these duties have not been imposed under the provisions of the Trade Act of 1974, under which the US applies safeguard measures.
The US said, ‘The US is not continuing these actions in accordance with the safeguards/emergency action provision. “These actions are not taken in the interests of the industry and therefore there is no basis for consultation under the Safeguard Agreement in relation to these measures.” “Therefore, India’s request for consultation has no basis under the Agreement on Safeguards Measures,” it said. Nevertheless, we are ready to discuss this or any other issue with India.
First Published – April 18, 2025 | 10:32 PM IST
(Business Standard staff has changed only the headline and photo of this report; the rest of the news has been published without any changes from a shared news source.)
