In comparison to his state of the European Union speech of September 2017 (see EUROPE 11624), the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, had little to say about trade subjects on Wednesday 12 September.
Against a backdrop of serious international trade tension, it came as no surprise that Juncker confirmed his unfailing commitment to multilateralism at international level, with a commitment of Europe as an open, but not a free continent, and called for the swift ratification of the economic partnership with Japan (see EUROPE 12064).
The Commission President also reiterated the importance of the EU's 'soft power' through its trade relationships, which is reflected by exporting high European food safety, employment law, environmental and consumer rights standards.
However, he made no reference to the reform of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), even though this is a key issue in defending trade multilateralism and regulating world trade (see EUROPE 12084). The only reference made to the WTO concerns the distribution of tariff quotas on the WTO list in the framework of Brexit.
It is to Africa in particular that the EU must now turn, said Juncker, inviting the EU to breathe new life into a balanced inter-continental partnership (see other article).
The Commission's letter of intent set out the main work underway in the field of trade negotiations: - signature and conclusion of agreements with Singapore, Vietnam and Mexico; - completion of negotiations with Mercosur and Chile; - progress hoped for with Australia and New Zealand.
No reference was made to the discussions on a tariff agreement with the United States that were launched when he met American President Donald Trump at the end of July (see EUROPE 12092), or to negotiations on an investment agreement with China. (Original version in French by Hermine Donceel)