October 27, 2005

US senators introduce legislation for retaliation on Japan's beef ban

Over 20 US senators have introduced legislation that would force President George Bush to impose tariffs on Japanese beef, if Japan failed to lift its ban on American beef by the end of this year.

Japan has banned US beef since December 2003 following the discovery of mad cow disease in Washington State.

However, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said there was no hurry to resolve the issue before President Bush visited the country next month. He added that Japan would only resume imports of American beef when safety standards were cleared.

Japan's food-safety panel also recently delayed a decision on whether to officially declare US beef safe.

Japan has been under increasing pressure from the US to lift its ban on American beef, in light of possible reprisals in the form of trade sanctions.

Saxby Chambliss, chairman of the US Senate Agriculture Committee, said he had lost patience with the "foot-dragging of the Japanese bureaucracy."

However, US Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns had earlier mentioned he opposed the use of trade sanctions in retaliation against Japan's ban.

US Trade Representative Rob Portman also said retaliatory sanctions against Japan were not favoured by the Bush administration. He added that retaliatory tariffs would also raise costs to American consumers, but hoped the Japanese government would "get the message".