BRASILIA, May 9 (Reuters) - Brazil's government declined immediate comment Tuesday over Canada's threat to impose trade restrictions on Brazilian imports worth up to C$4.9 billion ($3.3 billion) over seven years in a heated dispute on subsidies to jet makers.
A Foreign Ministry spokesman said no comment would be made until senior officials had been briefed on the decision.
"I am going to have to speak with them to see whether we have a comment or not," said the ministry's chief spokesman Luiz Fernando Ligiero.
Canada announced earlier Tuesday it would not appeal a ruling by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) requiring changes to a export subsidy programme that benefits Canada's jet maker Bombardier Inc. Brazil, in turn, has said it would appeal the WTO ruling against its subsidy programme for Bombardier's chief rival, Embraer.
Canada's International Trade Minister Pierre Pettigrew said he was open to negotiations, but "we must protect our WTO rights in the event that Brazil does not comply with the ruling.":
