Geneva, 22/05/2002 (Agence Europe) - On 21 May, Japan officially filed a complaint with the WTO against the new customs duties applied by the United States to steel imports, thus following closely behind the European Union. The same day, the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body was to hear the arguments put forward by the EU, which calls for the creation of an independent three-member committee to determine whether the US measures comply with world trade regulations. It is likely that, if this committee is set up, it will group together the complaints filed by the EU and Japan. South Korea, Brazil and Slovenia may also decide to join Brussels and Tokyo in bringing the matter to the WTO's notice. Takeo Hiranuma, Japanese Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry, felt the independent committee would probably not begin its work until the end of August, and that the first phase in its research would last at least six months. On Wednesday in Geneva, it was expected that the United States would refuse the immediate creation of such a committee, but it could only do so once. Once a decision has been taken, Washington will still have the possibility of appealing. These procedures are long and the dispute could therefore not be settled before early 2004.