U.S. officials defend enforcing WTO safeguard vs. China

BEIJING (Reuters) - The safeguard provision that China agreed to as a condition for joining the World Trade Organization in 2001 should be enforced, U.S. trade officials said on Monday, despite Chinese pressure for the U.S. to reduce trade actions on its products.

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk gave a resounding "No" to a question on whether the U.S. might agree to mount fewer cases, including safeguard cases, in return for a Chinese agreement to allow the yuan currency to appreciate.

"Nothing would drive the American people further away from believing in the benefits of trade than for the United States to operate under the assumption that actually our trading partners can just give up on their promises," Kirk said.

The safeguard clause, which allows for tariffs to be applied against disruptive surges in Chinese imports, was applied in September for the first time by the United States on China-made tires.

"If we want additional trade agreements to ever pass in the U.S. Congress, we have to tell the American people and policy markets that whenever people sign an agreement, we will enforce those agreements," Commerce Secretary Gary Locke told a business gathering in Beijing ahead of a visit by U.S. President Barack Obama.

"We have to hold each other to these agreements."

Chinese trade officials fear more such cases could follow, from the U.S. and other trading partners that are increasingly importing Chinese goods.

The U.S., Europe and other countries are pressing China to allow the yuan to appreciate after it has been effectively re-pegged to the dollar since mid-2008. But despite a change in wording from the central bank on how it manages the currency, China has adamantly rebuffed calls to revalue.

(Reporting by Lucy Hornby; Editing by Ken Wills)