September 27, 2012 - 16:33 AMT
EU seeks $12bn in sanctions against U.S. over Boeing

The European Union is seeking some $12 billion in sanctions against the United States as part of a long-running dispute before the World Trade Organization involving subsidies to plane makers Airbus and Boeing, The Associated Press reported.

The Geneva-based trade body said Thursday, Sept 27, that the EU plans request on Oct 23 the right to impose the sanctions.

On Monday, the U.S. claimed it had complied with a March WTO ruling against illegal subsidies to Boeing by stopping some payouts to the company through NASA and the Pentagon and by removing some beneficial tax and funding policies.

The WTO panel has also ruled that European governments provided $18 billion in subsidies to Airbus — though not all were deemed illegal.