Did you expect the European Union to quickly come up with a revamped ‘enforcement regulation’ ? Don’t hold your breath. France, among others, wants this to become a bigger piece of legislation than originally envisaged by the European Commission.
EU trade policies
EU Thailand free trade agreement: member states want mandate revised
The European Union is preparing to re-launch free trade agreement negotiations with Thailand, a key member of the South East Asian grouping ASEAN.
ASEAN: the EU needs to get its human rights vs trade priorities right
Some week-end reading after many developments this week on EU ASEAN trade: Vietnam FTA, trade preference withdrawal for Cambodia, GSP reports on Myanmar and the Philippines, and an EU ASEAN Senior Officials meeting. Commentary by Borderlex editor Iana Dreyer.
Cambodian government defiant in face of partial EU duty free right suspension
The European Commission released a widely anticipated ‘delegated act’ in which, for the first time in the scheme’s almost fifteen-year history, suspends free trade rights for one of the poorest countries in the world. About 20% of Cambodian exports to the EU are covered by the planned preference withdrawal measures. …
TDI Series: A brave new world for EU trade defence policy?
The European Commission plans to roll out anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tools to tackle a whole range of new global challenges, not least in the digital sphere. Arnoud Willems discusses trends, challenges and accountability issues in EU trade defence policy with Borderlex’s Iana Dreyer.
Week in Brussels: EU US, digital, ESA
This week the focus has been on the soon-to-be-launched EU-UK trade negotiations and the real start to British post-Brexit trade policy. Our *four articles* (!) this week here. But London is not quite the centre of the world. Here other developments this week in EU trade. Hogan flies to Washington …
An EU dimension in rumoured US government procurement withdrawal plans?
Trade sniping out of Washington just doesn’t seem to be ending. Bloomberg reported yesterday that the White House was mulling pulling out of the Government Procurement Agreement, a preferential accord among a subset of mostly rich-country members of the World Trade Organization. China and Russia are in the process of …
Week in Brussels: EU US, Vietnam, Cariforum, 1 year EU Japan
It’s been a week full of hoo haa around EU US agriculture trade. The EU put a bit of antidumping into its digital strategy. The European Parliament ratified the EU-UK withdrawal agreement on Wednesday and offered a moving good-bye ceremony to Britons. In London, Union Jack flags are being waved …
5G Toolbox resorts to traditional trade policy tools to enhance cybersecurity in EU
The European Commission’s long-anticipated policy proposals aimed at enhancing Europe’s new-generation internet’s security will rely on a series of traditional ‘trade policy’ instruments. The EU’s executive body wants these to be rolled out within three months across all member states. Brussels has come up with a unique approach in dealing …
Week in Brussels: Movement on Mexico, Korea labour dispute, Uzbekistan
It’s been a pretty packed week. Here other low-key but important developments in EU trade policy. EU Mexico FTA stirrings The EU and Mexico had concluded negotiations towards the modernisation of a twenty year old free trade agreement in April 2018. But that agreement ‘in principle’ left the parties with …