The leaders of the 28 EU member states will discuss European measures at their meeting on Friday 23 June that will make it possible to strike the right balance between opening markets and putting in place fair international trade rules (see EUROPE 11811).
In their conclusions, the 28 leaders will restate the desire of the European Union to continue with open, fair and rules-based trade with its commercial partners. But they clearly face a challenge in convincing the citizens of Europe that this is an approach that will look after their interests, a European official said on Wednesday 21 June.
“Within the Council, there is a hard-line free trade tendency and a tendency balanced between open markets and the need for robust defence of the EU’s commercial interests”, explained an ambassador.
According to the draft conclusions dating from Monday 19 June, a copy of which has been obtained by EUROPE, the European leaders might make clear the importance of respect for the standards that lie at the heart of the “European way of life”, whether they be environmental, social or health and consumer protection. They will call on the European legislator to reach swift agreement on reform of trade defence instruments, such as the EU’s new anti-dumping methodology (see EUROPER 11812). The Commission may be asked to work on additional measures to make the existing armoury more responsive and more effective, including by means of EU-wide monitoring of investment by third countries in strategic sectors.
This latter idea is one ardently championed by the French authorities, President Emmanuel Macron having recently been elected on a platform of a “protective Europe”. France, along with 12 other member states, has introduced rules on foreign investment in sensitive sectors. Along with Germany and Italy, it has argued for action at European level in this area (see EUROPE 11726).
According to Paris, this is not about giving further powers to the Commission but rather increasing shared vigilance across Europe, with all decisions to approve or reject investment from a third country continuing to be matters for the individual member states.
Another ambassador, from a country which has not legislated on foreign investment, urged caution. He argued that the forthcoming discussion must not result in fresh “discrimination”. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion with the editorial team)