The European Parliament resumes negotiations on the trade agreement between the EU and the US, but does not unfreeze it

The European Parliament failed to reach a common position this Wednesday on the trade agreement between the European Union and the United States —Turnberry deal—which had been closed since last summer.

The meeting in the European Parliament has not been enough to agree on their position regarding the elimination of tariffs about American industrial products and lobster.

For its part, Washington has already reduced tariffs on European cars after Brussels introduced legislation that MEPs are still debating.

The ratification of the agreement was frozen by Donald Trump’s recent threats to acquire Greenland and his threat to impose tariffs on European countries that had sent troops to the Arctic island.

However, the European Parliament decided to set this Wednesday as the day for resume processing when the US president announced that he was withdrawing the tariff threats.

Therefore, and due to the lack of consensus at the meeting held, it is expected that the parliamentary committee on International Trade vote for said agreement the next February 24 —so that later the plenary session of the European Parliamentin a session still undated—.

The tariff agreement that the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, sealed with the American president last July in Scotland means that Washington is committed to limiting to a 15% tariff on purchases from the European Union, but in exchange the Europeans renounce reciprocal retaliation for that taxed percentage.

Until now, only part of the agreement has been implemented which affects European exports, but the EU is not importing US products at 0% because the European Parliament has not yet ratified the agreement.

In their review of the agreement, the MEPs agree to resume the process “provided that The United States respects the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Union and its Member States and comply with the terms of the ‘Turnberry Agreement.'”

Thus, the MEPs have agreed to include among the reasons for suspension of tariff preferences granted “threats to the essential security interests of the Union or its Member States, including their territorial integrity”.

“We have to set clear limits and be ready to freeze negotiations or the implementation of the agreement at any time if the situation requires it,” stressed the head of the European Parliament’s Trade Commission, social democrat Bernd Lange.

Group reactions

In a statement, the group of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) has warned that the resumption of work “it’s not a blank check” and has assured that they will not vote “in favor of any agreement with the United States as long as President Trump continues to undermine the sovereignty of Europe.”

In a statement, the European People’s Party (EPP) urged the rest of the groups to approve the pact with the US now that Trump has withdrawn his threat, and assured that each year that it is delayed will mean losses of around 5,000 million euros in tariffs for the European economy and that it generates uncertainty in the transatlantic trade relationship.

“Blocking or reopening elements that are beyond Parliament’s competence would only increase instability and undermine Europe’s credibility. Moving ahead restores business trustreduces unnecessary costs and protects the industrial and agricultural interests of Europe,” the EPP assessed.

“We strongly support reaching an agreement as soon as possible. Any further delay only adds uncertainty to the European industry and undermines business confidence,” said Michael Strauss, spokesman for the right-wing group European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR).