Speaking ahead of the expected adoption of the draft mandates on EU-US trade talks by the European Commission today, S&D spokesperson for EU-USA trade relationships and chair of the European Parliament’s trade committee, Bernd Lange, said: 

 "There is no basis for trade talks with the US as long as the Trump administration insists on keeping the illegal tariffs on steel and aluminium in place. They even threaten the EU with imposing additional illegal tariffs, this time on the car industry. The EU can’t accept to be forced to the negotiation table, and on top of that have the scope of the negotiations dictated to it. Limiting negotiations to industrial goods is unacceptable. The European Socialists and Democrats insist on a comprehensive negotiation mandate to ensure that workers' rights and environmental standards can be enshrined in trade agreements.”

 

“For months, we have been waiting for signs of good will by the US administration, but we have not seen any. Before we can even think of starting negotiations, a proper scoping exercise must be conducted, one fully involving the European Parliament. Any negotiation process must respect the democratic processes and the role of the European Parliament. 

“With our progressive agenda, the Socialists and Democrats have significantly shaped the EU’s trade policy by pushing for democratic accountability and transparency, and including binding labour and environmental clauses in trade agreements.  I can see no reason why we Europeans should throw our principles over board when it comes to trade relations with the US.”

 

Note to the editor: The draft mandates still need to be adopted by EU countries.