The United States seems to increasingly look like the bad guys in the international dispute with Antigua over U.S. online casinos gambling restrictions. Antigua and the U.S. have been involved in some form of dispute through the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for the past nearly five years – and just when it looks like the dispute might be getting somewhere, the U.S. fails to meet another deadline. Mark Mendel, the lawyer representing the small island nation of Antigua and Barbuda in this online casinos related dispute commented weeks ago that the nation expected a settlement proposal by the end of March. Well, not surprisingly it’s now into April and the U.S. has not submitted the promised settlement proposal.

The WTO is involved in resolving the dispute at the request of Antigua and Barbuda because the small nations are unable to command that respect of the U.S. Trade Representatives without the authority and backing of the WTO. But even with the WTO requesting that the U.S. comply with international trade agreements concerning the free movement of online casinos gambling services, there has been little cooperation from the Bush administration. In fact, the U.S. is so adamant about maintaining the protectionist online casino gambling legislation that it has actually now paid the EU in trade compensations for the right to block offshore internet gambling companies.

Antigua and Barbuda currently have $21 million worth of sanctions against the U.S. that were granted by the WTO as a way for the nations to recoup some of their costs. But despite threats to use the $21 million worth of compensation sanctions on U.S. movie industry copyrights, the small island nations are waiting a bit longer before taking further action against the U.S. It is still a waiting game to see if the U.S. actually plans to submit a settlement agreement with Antigua and Barbuda.