White House official 'unaware' of Trump's plans to exit WTO

A top White House official has said he is unaware if President Donald Trump is considering to pull the United States out of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

"I'm not familiar with any plans right now, at this point," The Hill quoted White House legislative affairs director Marc Short, as saying.

He added that "it was fair to say" Trump has "grown frustrated" with the WTO, which regulates global trade agreements, as per the report.

"I think that the president's expressed frustrations with international organizations from a sovereignty perspective, but I think that the president also believes that there are extensive tariffs assessed on American products overseas that's not a reciprocal tariff," Short further said.

Short's remarks came after a report from American news website Axios emerged earlier on Friday which said that Trump reportedly told officials that he wanted the US to withdraw from the WTO.

In the past, Trump has been a vocal critic of the global trade body, calling it "unfair to the US" and a "disaster for the country."

The US President has not shied away from taking actions by imposing steep trade tariffs on countries such as China, Canada and Mexico.

In a retaliatory move, Canada, Mexico, China and the European Union (EU) have imposed tariffs on US goods.

It is to be noted that the EU and Canada have already filed a case at the WTO over the tariffs and both the US allies have begun their dispute proceedings.