Deliverables Possible at Next TTC

US and European Union officials are looking to the next meeting of the Trade and Technology Council to deliver results in key areas discussed at this week’s session, European Commission Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager said Wednesday..

Those issues – artificial intelligence, semiconductors and standards setting – are ones that Brussels and Washington have been engaged on since the TTC was launched.

Ms. Vestager and European Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis spoke at a program sponsored by the Center for Strategic and International Studies the day after the 5th ministerial-level meeting of the TTC.

No major deliverables were announced after that meeting. But Ms. Vestager suggested outcomes could emerge at the 6th meeting planned for April in Belgium.

On semiconductors, Brussels and Washington in the TTC are focusing on the supply chain for legacy or mature chips. China appears to be stepping up its production of those chips – a move that needs to be watched, Ms. Vestager noted. In addition, the transatlantic partners are making sure they do not get into a subsidy war with each other as they take steps to promote domestic production of chips.

Economic Security

Mr. Valdis stressed that Europe’s new economic security initiative aims to be a targeted approach to national security concerns and is not meant to be protectionist. The EU remains a champion of global trade rules, but is facing a situation where trade and investment is being used by some countries as economic coercion.

Part of the new initiative is to improve the efficiency of Europe’s export controls, given that each member state has its own competent authority, he said. At this week’s TTC meeting, there was a discussion on better coordination of US and EU export controls.

On another issue, Mr. Valdis expressed confidence that the EU’s carbon border adjustment mechanism is compatible with World Trade Organization rules and can be successfully defended, if necessary. The CBAM is not trade distorting because it is country neutral, he said.

The two European officials also met Wednesday with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, where the discussion focused on transatlantic cooperation of sanctions against Russia.