Diffusion du document : INRA Station d'Economie et Sociologie rurales 65 rue de Saint-Brieuc 35042 Rennes Cedex (FRA)The history of EC-US conflicts about the Common Agriculturai Policy has been long and rich in events. The US has never accepted the founding principles of the CAP, and their implicatlons. While some periods were rather quiet, sudden outbreaks of confliets have been recurrent. Even if the US finally accepted that a protectionlst CAP was the economic prlce to pay for the political gain of a united Europe, it could not llve with the variable Ievy system and even less wlth its recent use of export restltutions on SC surpluses. Starting in early 1980's attempts to complete the CAP by a tax on fats and oils or by a ceiling on cereal substltute imports have triggered a swlft retaliation by the US (Hathar,vay, Tracy, Petlt)
