The United States trade representative, Robert E. Lighthizer, said he planned to file a new case at the W.T.O. Trade experts have heaped scorn on that claim, noting that the United States already produces more than two-thirds of the steel it uses. Many assumed that Mr. Trump was using extreme actions as a prelude to negotiation. Diplomats and trade organization officials acknowledge that the aggressive posture of the United States is in part an outgrowth of a substantial failure by the W.T.O. is the direct descendant of a global trading pact reached at the end of World War II, fueled by the idea that trade across borders minimizes prospects for war.

Source: New York Times March 23, 2018 09:00 UTC