WTO decision opens door for China to sanction U.S.

The Trump administration blasted a World Trade Organization decision Tuesday that could let China levy sanctions on the United States.

The 2-1 decision by the WTO’S appellate body was actually a mixed verdict in a case that dates back to 2007 and is unrelated to the tariffs the administration has slapped on $250 billion in Chinese goods.

In its final decision, the WTO agreed with the U.S. that China lets stateowned enterprises subsidize Chinese firms by providing components at unfairly low costs.

But it said the U.S. wrongly calculated the tariffs imposed to punish China for the subsidies. If the U.S. doesn’t recalculate them, China can retaliate with its own sanctions.

WASHINGTON — Army Secretary Mark Esper, President Donald Trump’s nominee to become secretary of defense, said at his Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday that he is troubled by Turkey’s decision to defy the United States by acquiring Russian-made air defenses.

“It is very disheartening to see how they have drifted over the past several years,” Esper said, citing the Turkish government’s purchase of the S-400 air defense system, which the Trump administration has said is likely to trigger U.S. economic sanctions and jeopardize Turkey’s role in the NATO alliance, whose primary adversary is Russia.

Esper also said the administration plans to brief lawmakers soon on a plan for working with other countries to more closely monitor commercial shipping in and around the Persian Gulf. He said this plan, which he called “Operation Sentinel,” is intended to deter Iran from impeding navigation in the Gulf and avoid Iranian miscalculations.

Testifying a day after Trump submitted his nomination to the Senate, Esper faced a mostly friendly series of questions from members of the Armed Services Committee.

One clear exception was Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts Democrat who is seeking the party’s presidential nomination. She indicated she does not intend to vote for Esper’s confirmation, citing what she called his unwillingness to commit to avoiding potential conflicts of interest with his former employer, Raytheon Co., which is a major defense contractor.

“You should not be confirmed as secretary of defense,” Warren said.

The Republican-led Senate is expected to attempt to get Esper confirmed as early as Thursday.

Esper is one of three people who have served as acting defense secretary this year following Jim Mattis’ departure New Year’s Eve. The first was Patrick Shanahan, who quit in June. Esper then took over as the acting secretary.

The moment Esper’s nomination was received by the Senate on Monday, he was required by law to step out of his role as acting defense secretary until he is confirmed as the permanent secretary. He reverted to his previous position of Army secretary.

Filling in for Esper pending his confirmation is Richard Spencer. Spencer has been the civilian leader of the Navy since August 2017, a position he would return to if Esper wins Senate confirmation as expected.