U.S. hits back with WTO challenge against Canada’s retaliatory tariffs
OTTAWA — The United States fired back Monday at the Canadian government’s retaliatory tariffs on American imports by launching a formal challenge with the World Trade Organization.
The Trump administration also called countermeasures aimed at the U.S. by Canada and other trading partners “completely without justification under international rules.”
The federal Liberal government introduced reciprocal duties earlier this month on some U.S. imports after the White House slapped Canada and others with tariffs on steel and aluminum.
Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland has called Washington’s metal tariffs absurd and illegal because they’ve been applied on the premise that Canada represents a national security threat to the U.S. Ottawa’s response has been $16.6-billion worth of countermeasures on imports of American steel, aluminum and consumer products.