If the EU is to become more competitive, some Member States believe it is important to avoid imposing unnecessary trade barriers. Economic security was one of the topics on the agenda of the European industry ministers meeting in Bilbao on Tuesday 25 July. This followed on from the European Commission’s recent communication on the subject (see EUROPE 13205/7) and the related discussion between leaders in June (see EUROPE 13213/1).
Some expressed views on this subject just before the meeting in Bilbao. Speaking to the press in the morning, the Czech Minister for Industry and Trade, Jozef Sikela, urged caution when it came to imposing, for example, outbound investment screening: “[Such a measure] has a certain reason, but we have to do it in a way that we don’t impose additional barriers, so we should be careful in balancing the benefits”, he told EUROPE.
His Hungarian counterpart, Marton István Nagy, expressed even stronger views: “Economic security can be harmful, so we need to be very careful [...] Sanctions can have negative consequences for competition and weaken the European economy. Look, for example, at what is happening with the export restrictions on Chinese gallium and germanium (see EUROPE 13215/26). This is damaging the semiconductor and automotive industries; it’s very dangerous”, he told the press ahead of the meeting.
The Spanish Secretary of State for European Affairs, Pascual Navarro, also indicated that some delegations had stressed the importance of the EU’s openness to trade in the debate on open strategic autonomy.
Further details of the round table on economic security could not be provided to the journalists present, as the press conference took place before this working session. The Spanish Minister for Industry and Tourism, Héctor Gómez Hernández, left his counterparts before the end of the meeting to join a Council of Ministers meeting in Madrid. Pascual Navarro remained in Bilbao until the end of the meeting. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)