The EU and the USA have failed in their attempt to resolve important trade disputes at a top meeting in Washington. US President Joe Biden’s consultations with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council President Charles Michel ended on Friday without the two sides achieving a breakthrough on two pressing trade issues.
There has been a dispute in recent months over, among other things, a US law that provides for billions in investments in climate protection and subsidies for US industry. This triggered concerns in Germany and the EU about competitive disadvantages. At a meeting in Washington in March, Biden and von der Leyen approached each other and agreed to negotiate a deal on minerals for car batteries. It is intended to make electric vehicles manufactured in Europe eligible for US tax credits. However, a joint statement after Friday’s meeting said only that the two sides had made progress toward such an agreement and looked forward to making further progress in the coming weeks.
The other dispute concerns special tariffs on steel and aluminum imports introduced by then US President Donald Trump in 2018. Their impact was severely limited in 2021 by a preliminary deal between Brussels and Washington. However, this also stipulates that a long-term solution should be found by the end of the year. In the final declaration on Friday, too, there was only talk of progress that would be made further in the next two months. Brussels cited insufficient accommodation from the USA as the reason for the failure of the negotiations before the summit meeting. According to diplomats, both sides want to give themselves a little more time to find compromises. If this does not succeed, special tariffs could be due again on all European steel and aluminum exports to the USA in 2024. The EU is then likely to reintroduce its special tariffs on US products such as bourbon whiskey, Harley-Davidson motorcycles and jeans. These were enacted in retaliation for steel and aluminum tariffs imposed by Trump.