Washington, Dec. 2 (BNA): The United States will delay its agreement to scrap UK steel and aluminum tariffs due to concerns about post-Brexit trade rules affecting Northern Ireland, the Financial Times reported.
The administration of former US President Donald Trump imposed 25% and 10% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on the European Union in 2018. The tariffs were withdrawn in October of this year, but remained in place for Britain due to its exit from the European Union. European Union, Reuters reports.
In a call seen by the newspaper, a US Department of Commerce official was quoted as saying that talks with the UK on easing tariffs on metals could not go ahead.
The official referred to US concerns about British threats to activate Article 16 of the emergency clause, the report said, especially from the US Congress.
Article 16 is an emergency brake allowing the UK or the EU to seek to suspend parts of the Brexit agreement that introduced some controls on the movement of goods into Northern Ireland from mainland Britain if it leads to persistent difficulties.
The Financial Times said the United States had informed the United Kingdom of the delay.
The UK Department of Commerce said: “We see no connection to this particular issue and the Northern Ireland Protocol and it will not in any way affect the UK’s approach. This is because major changes to the Protocol are needed in order to protect the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement and Northern Ireland’s standing in the UK internal market.
A British government spokesman said the UK was in regular discussions with US Trade Representative Catherine Taye and Trade Secretary Gina Raimondo on the issue and remained focused on agreeing on a decision to remove tariffs.
The United States has expressed grave concerns that a row between London and Brussels over the implementation of the 2020 Brexit deal could undermine the Good Friday Agreement, which effectively ended three decades of violence in Northern Ireland.
In September, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warned that there could be no post-Brexit trade deal with Washington if the Northern Ireland peace deal was destroyed.