People are subsidizing all over the world for reasons that would be illegal under the State Aid Code. The Europeans are unwilling to enter an agreement that sidesteps the State Aid Code, sources close to the negotiations say. The code applies to the entire steel industry, not just specialty steel. A separate code on specialty-steel subsidies would be a nightmare to enforce because many European steelmakers produce both carbon and stainless products, a source says. The Europeans don't want to widen the doors to subsidies.
Nobody wants to do that again.
At the time of those talks, which occurred around the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development steel committee's meeting June 12-13, discussions proceeded about a possible suspension agreement with Russia and Ukraine. The Russian government sent a March 31st letter to Commerce Secretary William Daley that expressed interest in settling the current antidumping investigation instigated last year by platemakers Geneva Steel and Gulf States Steel. Russian plate producer Severstal desired a speedy conclusion to the investigation, the letter said. Commerce has overseen several settlements with nonmarket economies accused of dumping products into the U.S. Agreements on European steel imports go back to 1982, although none has been signed since the voluntary restraint agreement of 1989. But the U.S. government doesn't need the permission of the domestic industry to negotiate a suspension agreement if it deems that creating one is for the public good.