Breakthrough In Resolving Long-standing US-EU Trade Disputes

The United States and the European Union made taken a number of important decisions that help resolve long-standing trade disputes and strengthen the trade relations between the two entities.

The EU-US summit, held in Brussels, agreed to suspend tariffs imposed on U.S. aircraft manufacturing company Boeing and European rival Airbus for five years, and establish a high-level U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC).

The two sides committed to ensuring a level playing field for their companies and their workers.

The U.S. and EU’s agreement marks significant progress towards achieving a long-term solution to a 16-year trade dispute.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said the tariffs will remain suspended so long as EU support for Airbus is consistent with the terms of this agreement.

“Should EU support cross a red line and U.S. producers are not able to compete fairly and on a level playing field, the United States retains the flexibility to reactivate the tariffs that are being suspended,” she told reporters.

“Grounding the Airbus-Boeing dispute delivers a major confidence boost for EU-U.S. relations,” according to EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis.

She added, “The deal…includes a commitment for concrete joint collaboration to confront the threat from China’s ambitions to build an aircraft sector on non-market practices.”

The summit also delivered the prospect of resolving a couple of other long-standing trade disputes.

The leaders reached an Understanding on a Cooperative Framework for Large Civil Aircraft, reflecting a new transatlantic relationship in this area.

They also agreed to engage in discussions to resolve differences on measures regarding steel and aluminum before the end of the year.

The high-level EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) was formed to strengthen bilateral trade and investment relationship between the two largest economic partners in the world and to uphold and reform the rules-based multilateral trading system.

“We resolve to stand together to protect our businesses and workers from unfair trade practices, in particular those posed by non-market economies that are undermining the world trading system,” reads the EU-US summit statement, referring mainly to China.

The United States and the European Union will work together to challenge and counter China’s non-market practices in this sector that give China’s companies an unfair advantage.

Under the TTC, both sides commit to building an EU-US partnership on the rebalancing of global supply chains in semiconductors.

In parallel with the TTC, it has been decided to establish an EU-US Joint Technology Competition Policy Dialogue.

The two entities will cooperate to reach a global consensus on taxation of multinational companies within the OECD.

The leaders also agreed to work on efforts to achieve a meaningful reform of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

A EU-US High-Level Climate Action Group will be established.

The EU and the U.S. also committed to provide enough vaccine doses to inoculate two-thirds of the world’s population by the end of 2022.

A joint EU-US COVID Manufacturing and Supply Chain Taskforce will be formed to expand vaccine and therapeutics production capacity.

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