EU urges firm results, green alliance from US trade talks

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The United States and the European Union need to produce clear results next month from their forum on trade and technology and forge closer ties on green products and technology, European Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said on Wednesday.

Sweden will host a fourth ministerial-level meeting of the Trade and Technology Council (TTC) on May 30-31, bringing together Dombrovskis, EU tech chief Margrethe Vestager and U.S. counterparts Katherine Tai, Gina Raimondo and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Dombrovskis said in a speech at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington that the TTC had already been used to coordinate sanctions against Russia and on some technology and security issues.

“But we need to deliver more on the trade side. I want to see clear trade deliverables,” Dombrovskis said.

He said the two sides should find common approaches on trade facilitation and conformity assessment, the process whereby products are cleared for sale.

“We should also be aiming to move forward on digital and sustainable trade,” Dombrovskis said.

The transatlantic partners should, he said, help set common standards for green goods and technologies, ensure fair competition and build resilient supply chains.

European Union leaders have expressed concern about local content rules tied to many of the subsidies under the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), fearing they may lead manufacturers to relocate from Europe to the United States.

Dombrovskis said the two should work to align the domestic supports of the IRA and the EU Green Deal, so “turbo-charging” the green transition.

“Looking to the future, I want the TTC to be even bolder in its ambitions. In my view, we should be aiming for nothing less than a green transatlantic marketplace,” Dombrovskis said.

(Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)