OTTAWA, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Instead of meeting a deadline, the United States had more questions about a ruling that orders an end to U.S. tariffs on Canadian softwood imports.
An Oct. 5 North American Free Trade Agreement ruling was the fifth time the United States was told by an arbitration panel that the tariffs violate the agreement, The Toronto Globe and Mail reports.
The latest deadline to comply with the ruling was Friday.
Instead, the United States asked for more time to comply and clarification on the NAFTA ruling.
Canada had urged the United States to comply to prove trade relations were a priority for the Bush administration.
A dispute over the extra charges laid on Canadian timber exports has been festering for years, prompting recent calls by Canadian officials to begin retaliation.
Prime Minister Paul Martin asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to act on Monday.
International Trade Minister Jim Peterson said the United States is picking and choosing which rules to follow instead of the whole NAFTA trade agreement that the two countries, plus Mexico, have signed on to.
The United States claims Canadian companies are dumping the wood at cheap prices and undercutting U.S. manufacturers.
Canadian companies have paid more than $5 billion in tariffs so far.
