Ron Kirk announced his resignation as US Trade Representative after 4 years of service in the administration. The steel industry’s premier trade association commended him on his cooperation with the industry.
Tom Gibson, President and CEO of American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) said that “Ambassador Mr. Kirk is a dedicated public servant who helped lead US trade policy at a critical time in the progression of our nation’s trade agenda. The steel industry has appreciated his advocacy in the expansion of rules based trade which so profoundly affects our businesses, employees and communities. By bringing an unprecedented number of WTO cases he strongly championed US interests and focused on American jobs. We especially congratulate him on his success at the WTO regarding China’s violations of its WTO obligations when it limited exports of certain critical raw materials to protect its own manufacturers.
This was a hard fought and well deserved victory and one for which the steel industry will always be grateful. It was a great honor to work with Ambassador Mr. Kirk and we wish him well in his future successes.”
