European Union and United States Ministerial Meeting Drives Forward Transatlantic Economic Integration

Brussels, Belgium - Today, the EU Presidency hosted the first informal EU-US economic ministerial meeting to discuss transatlantic economic integration and shared economic challenges. Senior Ministers and Commissioners welcomed both sides’ agreement to concrete action plans and timelines to tackle the most significant issues in the transatlantic economy, including Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), regulatory cooperation, trade and security and improving innovation.

A US delegation, led by Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, met with Vice President of the European Commission Günter Verheugen, Commissioner Peter Mandelson, UK Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Alan Johnson, Austrian Minister of Economics and Labour Martin Bartenstein, and Finnish Under Secretary of State for External Economic Relations Pekka Lintu to discuss this agenda.

This followed a renewed call from business, including UNICE, the American Chamber of Commerce and the Transatlantic Business and Consumer Dialogues to keep transatlantic cooperation as a top priority. The meeting follows on commitments made in the 2005 EU-US summit, which called for closer transatlantic cooperation including on regulation, innovation, trade and security issues, and IPR.

Ministers and Commissioners welcomed an agreement on a work program on all new and existing priority areas of cooperation agreed at the EU-US Summit declaration in June.

Participants underlined their shared commitment to the protection of Intellectual Property Rights. They agreed on an IPR enforcement cooperation strategy for the 2006 EU-US Summit and to establish a working group which will begin work by the end of January 2006. The group will focus on specific activities, such as improved border enforcement cooperation, public-private partnership, and coordinated technical assistance to third countries.

Furthermore, Ministers and Commissioners welcomed progress on implementation of the Regulatory Cooperation Roadmap and plan to hold two meetings in Spring 2006 of the new high-level regulatory cooperation forum, a key element of the June Summit declaration on enhancing the transatlantic economic relationship.

The first event of the regulatory cooperation forum will be held in early 2006 and will concentrate on good regulatory practices, involving key US and European regulators and stakeholders. The second forum event will address best cooperative practices and identification of new prospective areas for cooperation from regulatory work plans.

Participants also welcomed progress and recognized the need for further cooperation on:

· Liberalization of EU-US air services, on which significant progress has been made in recent negotiations, with the hope of reaching full agreement before the next Summit, bringing substantial consumer benefit;

· Work on improving coordination of innovation policy and progress on several important programs involving science, technology and research and development.

· The Financial Markets Regulatory Dialogue, in view of the global nature of financial markets and the potential gains from facilitating transatlantic capital flows;

· Further development of the Visa Waiver Roadmap process for EU member countries not now participating in the Visa Waiver Programme; and measures to facilitate business and tourist travel.

The US Administration, the upcoming EU-Presidencies and the European Commission will prioritize this work and continue to push for progress across the range of summit issues.

Participants also discussed a range of other critical economic issues, including maintaining competitiveness in a changing global economy, spurring economic growth in developing economies, and energy efficiency and alternative technologies. With the December WTO Ministerial in Hong Kong approaching, participants underscored the importance of making significant progress in advancing the Doha Development Agenda negotiations.

Notes to Editors
The EU-US relationship is the deepest and largest bilateral trade and investment relationship in the world. It encompasses €600 billion of trade in goods and services each year, large flows of investment and provides employment to as many as 14 million people on both sides of the Atlantic, and that strengthening the relationship between the EU and the US could translate into huge economic benefits and improved competitiveness of both economies.

This meeting follows up the June 2005 annual EU-US Summit. The next EU-US Summit is due to take place in the first half of 2006.

Attendees included: US Department of Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, US Under Secretary of Commerce Franklin Lavin, US State Assistant Secretary Anthony Wayne, and US Treasury Assistant Secretary of International Affairs Clay Lowery, Vice President of the European Commission Günter Verheugen and Commissioner Mandelson, Commission Directors General for Trade, David O’Sullivan and for Enterprise and Industry, Heinz Zourek as well as senior officials from Commission Directorates General External Relations, Trade, Internal Market and Services and Economic and Financial Affairs, UK Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Alan Johnson, Managing Director of Macroeconomic Policy and International Finance UK Treasury Jon Cunliffe, Austrian Minister of Economics and Labour Martin Bartenstein, and Finnish Under Secretary of State for External Economic Relations Pekka Lintu.

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