Communication from the United States In Response to
INDIA's Request For Consultations
Circulated on 11 April 2025[1]

The following communication, dated and received on 16 April 2025, is being circulated at the request of the delegation of the United States.

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The United States has received India's request for consultations under Article 12.3 of the Agreement on Safeguards with respect to the tariffs imposed on steel and aluminum pursuant to Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.

The United States notes that the premise for India's request for consultations under Article 12.3 of the Agreement on Safeguards is that the tariffs are safeguard measures for purposes of that Agreement. The President imposed the tariffs on steel and aluminum pursuant to Section 232, under which the President determined that tariffs are necessary to adjust imports of steel and aluminum articles that threaten to impair the national security of the United States. Section 232 is a national security statute, and the United States is maintaining these actions pursuant to the essential security exception in Article XXI of the GATT 1994.

The United States did not take action pursuant to Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974, which is the law under which the United States imposes safeguard measures.[2] The United States is not maintaining these actions pursuant to the safeguards / emergency action provision in Article XIX of the GATT 1994 and the Agreement on Safeguards. These actions are not safeguard measures and, therefore, there is no basis to conduct consultations under the Agreement on Safeguards with respect to these measures.

Article 12.3 of the Agreement on Safeguards states that a "Member proposing to apply or extend a safeguard measure shall provide adequate opportunity for prior consultations" with Members having a substantial interest in exports of the product concerned. However, the United States is not proposing "to apply or extend a safeguard measure" with respect to steel or aluminum and, therefore, Article 12.3 does not apply. Accordingly, India's request for consultations pursuant to Article 12.3 has no basis in the Agreement on Safeguards.

Nonetheless, we are open to discuss this or any other issue with India. Any discussions regarding the tariffs would not be under the Agreement on Safeguards and would be without prejudice to our view that the tariffs are not safeguard measures.

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