The European Union hit back yesterday against the World Trade Organisation’s ruling which partly backed a US complaint that some state support for aerospace giant Airbus is illegal.

Announcing its intention to appeal, Brussels said in a statement: “While the report sides with the EU in rejecting a significant number of US claims, there are other aspects of the report which need to be corrected or clarified.”

The WTO confirmed reception of the appeal filed yesterday morning.

In a 1,200-page ruling made public in June on Washington’s complaint, the WTO had asked EU states to halt some aid for the development and export of Airbus airliners.

It notably accepted three out of seven claims by Washington that key launch aid amounted to export subsidies, which are illegal under WTO rules.

WTO arbitrators had also found that 21 instances of support granted to Airbus for the launch of the A300 aircraft series amounted to subsidies as the interest rates levied were charged at below market rate.

Brussels said it would challenge the findings on export subsidies and on launch aid measures.

It is also contesting the ruling that a causal link has been established between support to Airbus and adverse effects to Boeing.

In addition, it is disputing the panel’s conclusion that infrastructure made available by EU member states to Airbus in Hamburg, Bremen and Toulouse amounted to illegal subsidies.

“This dispute is too important to allow the legal misinterpretations of the panel to go unchallenged,” said European Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht.

“What is more, not appealing would allow for an unhelpful precedent for the WTO membership as a whole,” he added.

Brussels pointed out that the case was not only unprecedented in factual but also legal complexity, and addressed issues that had not been previously settled in WTO case-law.

“A damaging precedent could arise if certain of the panel’s legal interpretations are allowed to stand, resulting not only in a disservice to the entire WTO membership, but also putting an unwarranted burden on Airbus and the member states concerned,” warned the EU.