EC WARNS U.S. AND JAPAN ON TRADE TENSIONS The European Community (EC) delivered warnings to both Japan and the United States over trade frictions which have hit relations between the Community and its main trading partners. EC foreign ministers meeting here issued a statement deploring Japan's continued trade imbalance and appealed for greater effort by the country to open its markets. Ministers also issued a statement saying they were disturbed by moves in the U.S. to limit imports of textiles and warned that the Community would react to any such moves. EC External Trade Commissioner, Willy De Clercq has already written to his U.S. counterpart, special U.S. Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter, outlining the EC's concerns. The ministers' said they were "very disturbed" by the U.S. moves, adding, "the adoption of such measures would not fail to have a negative effect on the process of multilateral negotiations just started as well as on bilateral relations." Any unilateral U.S. moves would leave the EC no option but to react according to the laws of the world trade body, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), they said. In a separate statement on Japan, the EC ministers said they "deplore the continued aggravation of the imbalance in trade ... (and) expect Japan to open up its market more." The statement added that the EC continued to insist that the Japanese government must boost imports and stimulate demand. Ministers also called on the European Commission to prepare a report on U.S.-Japanese trade for July this year to enable them to take action where necessary. One diplomat said the call for a report showed ministers were determined not to let the Japanese question drop. "It wil be back on the table again and again," the diplomat said. De Clercq told journalists, "There is a certain nervousness, a growing impatience within the Community on trade relations with Japan." But diplomats said the Community is keen to continue talking with Tokyo to try and solve the problem rather than embark on a costly and damaging trade war.