CWR > Volume 4(2); 2018 > Articles
Research Paper
Published online: September 1, 2018
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.14330/cwr.2018.4.2.03
Trump's Steel and Aluminum Tariffs, National Security, and WTO Law
Fengning Li
Wuhan University of Technology
No. 205 Luoshibei Road, Wuhan, P.R. China 430070
Corresponding Author: lifn@whut.edu.cn
ⓒ Copyright YIJUN Institute of International Law. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
The US has invoked Article XXI of the GATT 1994 to justify its tariff measures on imports of steel and aluminum. However, the US' tariff measures are not imposed for the protection of the US "essential security interests" but for economic and trade reasons. They do not satisfy the conditions listed under Article XXI(b)(i) to (iii) and should not be justified by them. They should not be considered as either national security measures or safeguard measures, but as ordinary trade restriction measures that are inconsistent with the WTO rules and the US obligations. A panel or the Appellate Body not only has the jurisdiction to review this dispute, but is also capable of making findings and providing a recommendation. Even if the US has the discretion to impose tariff measures under Article XXI (b), whether it has been acted in good faith, is still subject to the WTO review. As regards the tariff measures, the US has not acted in good faith.
Keywords : Section 232, Steel and Aluminum Tariffs, GATT, Article XXI, Essential Security Interests, National Security, Safeguard Measures, Good Faith
