Brussels, 25/09/2007 (Agence Europe) - The first hearing on the EU complaint to the WTO over public subsidies granted to US aeroplane manufacturer Boeing (DS 353) will be held in Geneva on 26-27 September. The EU will seek to convince the WTO panel, set up to decide on this case, that, since 1992, Boeing has received some $23.7 billion in illegal aid, to the disadvantage of its European competitor Airbus. The EU will also seek to prove that Boeing received illegal export subsidies and that the United States acted against European interests in infringing the 1992 bilateral agreement. The Commission says that the US Federal Administration provided almost $18.9 billion between 1990 and 2004 in the form of aid for R&D and tax breaks (support from NASA and the Defense Department, and Foreign Sales Corporation subsidies), the remaining $4.8 billion having been paid by several US States (Washington and Kansas) and cities (see EUROPE 9475). (eh)