JUSTIFIED BY“NATIONAL SECURITY”
Trump’s tariffs are based on Section 232 of a 1962 U.S. law that allows safeguards based on“national security”.
Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford used Section 232 tariffs to tax foreign oil in 1971 and 1975, according to a study by law firm White & Case LLC. Section 232 has not been used since the WTO was created in 1995, although the U.S. government considered and rejected such action in 1999 and 2001.
The WTO allows a national security exemption from its rules, but it has never been used as a defense in a trade dispute. It could arise in a current row between Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, but that dispute is effectively in limbo unless Qatar actively pushes ahead with the case.