BRUSSELS, March 31 (Xinhuanet) - The European Commission (EC), the executive arm of the European Union (EU), on Thursday proposed the imposition of sanctions on a range of products from the United States in a row over US anti-dumping law.

    "The Commission took this latest step in the dispute over the (US) Byrd Amendment in light of the continuing failure of the United States to bring its legislation in conformity with its international obligations," the EC said in a statement.

    Under the Byrd Amendment -- a US anti-dumping law introduced in2000 -- duties are imposed on products deemed to have been "dumped" on the US market, the revenue being distributed to US companies hit by dumped imports into the US.

    In retaliation, the EC has proposed that a duty of 15 percent should be applied as of 1 May 2005 on a range of US products exported to Europe including paper, agricultural, textile and machinery products.

    The level of retaliation is based on the latest distribution of duties made under the Byrd Amendment -- slightly below 28 million US dollars.

    This level will be revised annually to adjust to the level of damage caused to EU companies.

    The EC's proposal still needs approval from the EU Council which comprises ministers from the 25-member EU bloc.

    The EU, accompanied by seven other countries including Japan and Brazil, challenged the Byrd Amendment in the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2002.

    A WTO panel ruled the Byrd Amendment illegal and demanded its repeal by December 2003.

    With the US failing to meet the deadline, the EU and other co-complainants were authorized to apply sanctions on the US from end-2004. Enditem