Meeting in plenary session in Brussels on Thursday 9 November, MEPs had the opportunity to debate and exchange views on the outcome of the summit between the EU and the United States which took place on 20 October (see EUROPE 13276/1).
Despite the introductory speech by the Vice-President of the Commission, Věra Jourová, who stressed the “success” of the summit and the “significant progress in terms of bilateral cooperation that has been achieved”, MEPs were critical of the final ambitions of the meeting.
“From the point of view of industrial policy, the most significant news from this summit is the absence of an agreement [on global steel and aluminium]”, said Henrike Hahn (Greens/EFA, German), supported by her compatriot from The Left, Helmut Scholz: “The trade dispute between the EU and the US has been going on for 1985 days, and there are still disagreements that have not been overcome. What is left of this summit? The two blocs want to set the rules for tomorrow’s technologies, but are bypassing multilateral forums. It’s the wrong way to go, and we need to get out of it”, he insisted.
Less vindictive, but just as critical, the MEP, Bernd Lange (S&D, German), also deplored the Europeans’ lack of ambition: “The United States is defending its interests, its IRA. But given the geopolitical situation, it is not in our interest to escalate”.
Several MEPs stressed the importance of reaching an agreement “by the end of the year”, particularly on critical minerals (see EUROPE 13250/25). “We need to move faster, the IRA could be catastrophic for Europe”, warned Francisco José Millan Mon (EPP, Spanish).
Similarly, the prospect of Donald Trump returning to power after the US elections in 2024 is seen by MEPs as a further complication, should the negotiations drag on. (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre)