“Today we agreed that this issue must be resolved quickly and effectively. It is necessary to avoid a subsidy race that would disrupt our relationship”, said Czech Trade Minister Jozef Síkela on Friday 25 November. He chaired a meeting with his European counterparts in Brussels, where the relationship with the United States and their Inflation Reduction Act were the predominant topics (see EUROPE 13060/28, 13054/02).
The trade ministers, speaking to the press, expressed similar fears of a subsidy race between the EU and the US. Mr Síkela said that in “this dangerous game, the winner is not in either continent, i.e. neither in Europe nor in the United States”.
Swedish minister Johan Forssell, whose country will hold the EU Council Presidency from January 2023, also warned against the idea of a subsidy race. “This is not a path we want to take. It would be very unfortunate if it came to that”, he told the press.
The French minister, Olivier Becht, was also cautious about the countermeasures the EU could adopt. Yet France has repeatedly floated the idea of replicating the ‘Buy American Act’ in some way in the EU.
For Mr Becht and his European counterparts, the task force working to find a negotiated solution between the EU and Washington should be given a chance (see EUROPE 13069/24). However, he did not rule out potential support for companies on European soil or coercive measures, “in compliance with World Trade Organization rules”.
Ministers do not want to set a deadline before possible countermeasures are taken. But European Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, and Mr Síkela said the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) meeting on 5 December would be an opportunity to “take stock”.
At the end of this meeting on 5 December, the EU and the US will adopt a joint statement detailing the results achieved by the TTC (see EUROPE 13069/24, 13067/23). (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)