Negotiations between London and Washington started as the UK left the European Union, entering a transition period to conclude trade deals, but the talks were soon interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.
British Trade Secretary Elizabeth Truss on Thursday stated that she will step up talks with the United States in order to remove tariffs on single malt Scotch whisky as soon as possible, adding they are “damaging industry and livelihoods on both sides of the Atlantic”, noting they are in nobody’s interests.
The trade secretary made the statement in response to a US decision to retain tariffs on EU goods, announced on Wednesday.
The whisky, imported to America in large quantities, was caught in the crossfire and slapped with a 25-percent tariff as a result of a trade dispute between the US and Brussels.
In this June 18 2015 file photo, vapour forms across the wings of an Airbus A380 as it performs a demonstration flight at the Paris Air Show, Le Bourget airport, north of Paris
Washington put the levy on multiple European products after getting permission from the World Trade Organisation to take $7.5 billion in retaliatory trade measures for Airbus subsidies. According to the US, Airbus is vastly oversubsidised by European governments, while the EU complained Boeing is vastly oversubsidised by American federal and state governments.
The row concerning the air manufacturers led to the tariffs, which hit the UK, Germany, France, and Spain.
While the levies were imposed on single malts, other types of Scotch whisky are not covered by the tariffs – but might be added to the list, as well as British gin and salmon, according to the BBC.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
