China claims U.S. 232 tariffs are safeguards, requests WTO consultations

China has requested consultations with the United States at the World Trade Organization under the Agreement on Safeguards over the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum, claiming the restrictions are safeguards irrespective of the Trump administration’s claim that the tariffs are necessary to protect national security. The requests for consultations are the first received by the Trump administration over the 232 tariffs at the WTO and could set up a potential showdown over the organization’s national security exception contained...