The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has launched an investigation to decide by the end of this year on whether hefty tariffs on steel imports imposed by the United States violate international trade agreements.
Countries in the 144-member body approved the creation of a three-person expert panel - requested by the European Union but backed by several countries, including Japan and China -at a meeting of the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body (DSB).
The United States, which insists the measures imposed in March are in line with WTO rules and says it will defend its case vigorously, blocked a first request from the EU at a DSB meeting on May 22nd.
But under the trade watchdog's dispute regulations, it could not do so a second time and yesterday's decision to set up the panel was automatic.
"This is an important step forward in our response to the unjustified, highly protectionist US measures," said European Union Trade Commissioner Mr Pascal Lamy.
"Similar requests by other countries for panels will shortly be accepted as the rest of the world joins to press the United States to remove [the tariffs]," he said in a statement issued in Brussels.
The steel row - which has set the US against most other producer countries - has stoked accusations that the administration of President George W Bush is pursuing a unilateralist course to serve his own domestic political aims.
The charges have been intensified with Mr Bush's approval of a farm bill pumping huge new subsidies into US agro-businesses active on global markets, with a US refusal to commit to new targets aimed at reducing global warming and others on promoting world sustainable development.