U.S. slams EU depiction of WTO meat hormone ruling

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The European Union has mischaracterized a ruling from the World Trade Organization court, the Bush administration said on Tuesday, insisting the United States is not required to remove sanctions in an epic trans-Atlantic trade spat.

"The EU is simply ignoring what the (WTO) panel actually said," said Gretchen Hamel, a spokeswoman for U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab, referring to a ruling made public on Monday in the long-running case over beef from cattle treated with growth hormones.