The European Union has asked the World Trade Organization (WTO) for authorization to apply trade retaliation for 35 million dollars annually against the United States for its insistence on failing to comply with a ruling that indicates that the tariffs it charges for the entry of Spanish olives violate certain commercial rules in force.
In a communication that has circulated among the Member States of the WTO, the European Union (EU) addresses the organization and reminds it that the period that had been considered reasonable for the United States to comply with that ruling expired in January 2023 and that this It was not done.
Specifically, the US Department of Commerce reduced its tariffs on Spanish black olives from 35% to 31%which Brussels considered totally insufficient.
Now, the EU has taken a step forward and proposes the suspension of trade benefits enjoyed by the United States for an amount equivalent to 35 million dollarswhich can be adjusted based on inflation this year and in subsequent years.
Finally, the Europeans indicated to the WTO that they will transmit a list of American goods and the level of tariffs that will be applied to them.
The EU has attached great importance to this dispute from the beginning due to the precedent it could create and its eventual impact on Europe’s agricultural subsidy policy under the umbrella of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
Beyond this case, the WTO and its member states are now awaiting the position that the new government of the US president-elect, Republican Donald Trump, will have towards this organization, which he repeatedly criticized during his first term, pointing out that His actions did not correspond to the interests of his country.
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