MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

EU Proposes End to Trade Dispute With U.S.

The European Union's top trade official said Monday he would move to lift millions of euros (dollars) in punitive tariffs on U.S. goods following the repeal in Washington of corporate tax breaks that were ruled illegal by the World Trade Organization.

"We shall be putting an end to our sanctions," said EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy.

But the two-decade trans-Atlantic fight will continue because of EU concerns about loopholes in the bill signed into law by U.S. President George W. Bush last week. That allows big exporters like Boeing Corp. to benefit from the breaks beyond the two-year transition period agreed to by the EU.

Lamy said he would ask the WTO for another ruling on whether the new U.S. law fully complies with global trade rules.

"There are certain provisions on which we have our doubts," he said.

The EU sanctions, which will be lifted Jan. 1, could potentially return if the U.S. law is judged to be noncompliant with the WTO ruling ? as happened to the first reform passed by the U.S. Congress in 2000.