06/07/2018 (Agence Europe) – In his first speech as president of BusinessEurope, Pierre Gattaz explained that during his term of office, he would be tackling two priorities: backing employment and growth in the EU and fighting protectionism. In this connection, the president of BusinessEurope criticised the decisions of the President of the United States on trade issues (see other article) without naming them. He said that in these times of unilateral action undermining trade rules and the institutions implementing them, Europe has to take on international leadership. He went on to say that he was very concerned about the salutation of measures and counter-measures that could turn into a trade war. The way he sees it, the EU should protect its interests while respecting World Trade Organisation rules, and sign new trade deals, like the future EU-Japan partnership. (PH)