WORLD TRADE WT/DS13/5
14February 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-0612)
Original: English
EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES -DUTIES ONIMPORTS OFGRAINS
Request fortheEstablishment ofaPanel bytheUnited States
Thefollowing communication, dated 13February 1997, from thePermanent Mission ofthe
United States tothePermanent Delegation oftheEuropean Commission andtotheDispute Settlement
Body, iscirculated attherequest oftheUnited States.
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TheEuropean Communities (“EC”)haveadopted areference pricesystem touseindetermining
theduties applicable toimports ofgrains (wheat, rye,barley, corn, sorghum andrice). These measures
areincludedinCommissionRegulationNos.1502/95(L147/13),1817/95(L175/23),1906/95(L182/9),
1573/95 /L150/53), and1818/95 (L175/25), andother relevant citations.
These measures appear tobeinconsistent withtheobligations oftheECunder theGeneral
Agreement onTariffs andTrade 1994 (“GATT 1994") andtheAgreement onImplementation of
Article VIIoftheGATT 1994, particularly inlightoftheso-called “margin ofpreference ”tariffbinding
undertaken bytheEC.Theprovisions ofthese agreements withwhich these measures appear tobe
inconsistent include, butarenotlimited to,thefollowing:
(1) GATT 1994, Articles I,IIandVII; and
(2) Agreement onImplementation ofArticle VIIoftheGATT 1994, Articles 1through
7andAnnex I.
These measures alsoappear tonullify orimpair thebenefits accruing totheUnited States directly
orindirectly under thecitedagreements.
Inacommunication dated 19July1995 (WT/DS13/1), theGovernment oftheUnited States
requested consultations withtheECregarding thesemeasures pursuant toArticle 4oftheUnderstanding
onRules andProcedures Governing theSettlement ofDisputes (“DSU”),Article XXIII oftheGATT
1994, andArticle 19oftheAgreement onImplementation ofArticle VIIoftheGATT 1994.
Consultations were heldon13September 1995, buttodatethedispute remains unresolved.
Accordingly, theUnited States respectfully requests theestablishment ofapanel toexamine
thematter withstandard terms ofreference assetoutinArticle 7oftheDSU.
TheUnited States asksthatthisrequest beplaced ontheagenda forthemeeting oftheDispute
Settlement Body scheduled tobeheldon25February 1997.