FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Andrew Puzder said the European Union should approve the Turnberry trade deal without major changes.
The United States Ambassador to the European Union, Andrew Puzder, urged the EU on Thursday to approve the EU-U.S. trade deal without major changes. “Our position is that a deal is a deal,” he told POLITICO.
The EU's three institutions, the European Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission, are holding talks to finalize legislation implementing the agreement reached last year at President Donald Trump's Turnberry golf resort in Scotland. The deal sees the bloc remove tariffs on US industrial goods once it enters into force.
The European Parliament and France are seeking to add some guarantees to the deal, but face opposition from countries led by Germany, which prefer the text to remain unchanged. The next round of interinstitutional negotiations, known as trilogues, is set for May 6.
"We hope that in the trilogue process the outcome will be an acceptance of the fact that an agreement is an agreement," Puzder said during an interview at the Delphi Economic Forum.
The proposed amendments include a "sunrise" clause, which would condition the removal of tariffs on American goods on the reduction of American tariffs on steel derivatives, as well as a "sunset" clause, according to which the agreement would expire on March 31, 2028, about 10 months before Trump leaves office.
"I don't want to influence the trilogue procedure by commenting on the amendments or the final outcome," Puzder said, adding, "if they want to negotiate a new deal, then I believe we will negotiate a new deal."
The European Commission also wants the legislation to be adopted as quickly as possible and without major changes. Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, currently in Washington, used the same phrase last week: “A deal is a deal.”
According to Politico, MEPs and France argue that the deal should be changed because of Trump's threats earlier this year to annex Greenland. A Supreme Court ruling that struck down some of his initial tariffs also means that the EU no longer enjoys the advantages that the Turnberry deal offered, as other markets now have similar terms.
Lini një Përgjigje