Today, U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) released the following statement in reaction to reports on the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) interim ruling about whether Boeing received subsidies to fund aircraft construction.

“According to reports on today’s interim final ruling, the WTO appears to have rejected most of Airbus’ claims about most of Boeing’s planes.

“The EU is trying to pretend that today’s ruling against Boeing is somehow equivalent to the US claim against Airbus.  Nothing could be farther from the truth.

“The WTO ruled that the EU used billions of dollars in illegal subsidies to aid the development of every single large commercial aircraft Airbus has ever built.  The WTO ruling against the US, however, initially appears to confirm only a fraction of the EU’s claims about illegal subsidies provided to Boeing.

“Yesterday, I joined with 91 of my colleagues to commend the U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk for his dedication to this case.  I urge him to continue fighting to level the playing field for U.S. aerospace workers, and to send a strong message to other countries around the world that it is unacceptable to launch a commercial aircraft industry using government dollars.

“I will continue doing everything possible to support Northwest Washington aerospace workers – the best in the world.”

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