Upon delegation of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of foreign Affairs, Undersecretary Maria Tripodi participated in the Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) held in Brussels on 27 November under the Spanish Presidency.
The topics on the agenda included the preparation of the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13); the signing of the Interim Trade Agreement with Chile, EU-US trade relations, and the presentation of the EU Commission’s Report on the Implementation of EU Trade Policy.
With specific reference to the first topic, the Undersecretary stated that, considering the continuing difficulties that hinder the WTO’s revitalization, Italy deems it necessary to further increase efforts to strengthen the multilateral trading system, both on the Organization’s reform side and on the side of the various open negotiating dossiers, ranging from the WTO’s reform to agriculture and the moratorium on e-commerce taxation.
Turning to the agreement with Chile, Undersecretary Tripodi expressed support for the efforts to sign it in the coming weeks, also hoping for swift approval by the EU Parliament. This is a very relevant agreement also in terms of access to raw materials for the ecological transition.
As to the negotiations undertaken with the United States on a “Global Arrangement on Sustainable Steel and Aluminium” and the “Critical Minerals Agreement”, while acknowledging that they are proving to be more complex than expected, Italy reiterated its full support for the Commission’s negotiating efforts to try to bridge the gap with the United States on these issues.
Finally, regarding the submission of the Commission’s Report on the Implementation of EU Trade Policy, while praising the sound and timely collaboration between the EU Commission and the Member States, the Undersecretary expressed great appreciation for the Report due to the special attention paid to the fundamental role played by SMEs in the Union’s economic system. She also interpreted it as significant confirmation of the need for and importance of free trade agreements for the EU and its Member States, an importance of which Italy has traditionally been a convinced and proactive supporter.
