EU Ambassador Says Boeing/Airbus, Section 232 Tariffs Must Be Solved to Make Progress
The European Union wants to work with America on ways to develop Artificial Intelligence standards, design a carbon adjustment border mechanism and stockpile medicines and personal protective gear in a way that lessens dependency on certain Asian countries, its ambassador to the U.S. said on a webinar hosted by the European American Chamber of Commerce
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“Let’s push the agenda. Let’s make sure we use our collective leverage and leadership in the world that needs it,” Stavros Lambrinidis said Jan. 27.
But before any of that can happen, he said, the U.S. and the EU need to settle the Boeing/Airbus dispute, and the U.S. has to lift Section 232 tariffs on European steel and aluminum. “I hope we can work immediately together to get rid of trade irritants that shouldn’t be on the table because they take up too much bandwidth, and we cannot afford it,” he said. He promised that the EU would immediately remove its retaliatory tariffs on American liquor and other goods when the 232 tariffs are lifted.
“This will be such a huge boost to both of our economies,” he said. He also said the EU and the U.S. need to work together to address Chinese overcapacity in steel and aluminum. “Same thing goes for Airbus-Boeing. This is a trade dispute that’s been going on for 15 years; it has to end,” he said. He noted that the tariffs on both sides are legal, but also that both sides lost cases at the World Trade Organization.
He echoed the suggestion of the National Association of Beverage Importers (see 2010140052) that temporarily lifting the tariffs for six months would give them space to reach a settlement. He said market economies “need to find disciplines for the industry in the future,” because aircraft companies may need government help to move away from petroleum-based fuel. “As we fight over this, China is producing 100% subsidized aircraft.”
Lambrinidis also said he hopes that the U.S. will join the consensus in Geneva for the next WTO director-general, and said negotiations in the WTO should work on reducing tariffs on green goods and medical goods. “And we have to talk about WTO reform,” he said. At the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the ambassador said, “We have to recommit to our discussions of digital taxation.” Lambrinidis acknowledged that these negotiations won't be easy, but added, “I am so excited about the prospects of all of this.”