China’s unfair subsidy practices continue to occupy discussions in the European Parliament as the contours of the EU’s new relationship with the US take shape. At a meeting of the Parliament's Committee on International Trade (INTA) on Monday 27 September, several MEPs questioned whether and how the EU could team up with the US to tackle unfair competition caused by foreign subsidies.
“How does the US perceive our instrument on foreign subsidies? What would it take to make the cooperation a success?” asked Liesje Schreinemacher MEP (Renew Europe, Netherlands).
In May, the European Commission presented its proposal to combat foreign subsidies that distort competition in the EU (see EUROPE 12713/1). MEP Christophe Hansen (EPP, Luxembourg) will be the rapporteur for the text in the Parliament.
For two of the experts present at the exchange, this must be done through a trilateral approach between the US, the EU and Japan.
“The trilateral cooperation effort that has already begun between the EU, the US and Japan must be completed and expanded. It needs to define what a subsidy is, create a burden of proof that is bearable, and do more to address remedies”, suggested Jennifer Hillman, a researcher at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) and former World Trade Organization (WTO) official.
Former EU Trade Commissioner and former WTO Director General Pascal Lamy fully agrees with this analysis: “China would have more pressure to move. This is a possible solution”, he said.
For most of the speakers in this exchange, the forthcoming regulation on foreign subsidies in the European market represents a step forward to protect against unfair practices and to set an example at international level.
According to Denis Redonnet, EU Chief Trade Enforcement Officer, it is absolutely essential to combine autonomous EU tools, such as the above-mentioned regulation, with coordinated action with the US on the global stage. “Uncoordinated action would lead to far too high a cost for all of us”, he warned.
Several voices in the European Parliament and among the Member States (see other news) have been raised in recent days to question the trust that can be placed in the transatlantic partner.
“It is clear that we have different interests [...] I think the EU should not be afraid to talk about strategic autonomy and really think about how to defend and develop our own interests in the future”, said INTA committee chair Bernd Lange (S&D, Germany).
From a broader perspective, INTA Committee members are enthusiastic about the principle of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council and expect concrete results.
Many, however, regretted the lack of a solution for the moment on steel and aluminium tariffs between the EU and the US. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)