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Jun 16, 2021

US-EU Summit Puts the Transatlantic Relationship Back On Track

As the U.S.-EU Summit comes to an end, it is evident that both sides managed to capitalize on the opportunity to announce concrete cooperation in a number of areas, including aircraft subsidies, technology, climate, taxation and vaccines.

AmCham Denmark is very pleased with the outcome of the Summit, which demonstrated a willingness to address key issues. However, several important challenges remain.

We applaud the announcement of the agreement between the U.S and the EU on the long-running large civil aircraft disputes, accompanied by a pledge to suspend the application of $11.5 billion in tariffs. As we highlighted in the June 14th AmCham/DI Op-Ed in Børsen, the removal of these punitive tariffs was much needed and will provide significant relief for businesses on both sides of the Atlantic.

The establishment of the Transatlantic Trade and Technology Council gives the U.S. and EU a tangible way to co-shape global regulatory standards on trade in digital services, which will continue to be a key driver of the global economy.

Looking forward there are still key issues that urgently need to be addressed. In fact, right now, delays in U.S. visa processing are so severe that it is seriously constraining business and student mobility between Europe and the U.S.

Therefore, AmCham Denmark is working proactively with AmCham’s across Europe to address this challenge and has co-signed a letter to the White House, National Security Council. In the letter, we call for a quick repeal of the U.S’s executive order 212(f) on travel restrictions from Europe, a review of the current status of visa processing at U.S. Embassies across Europe, and to provide Consular offices with the necessary resources to process visa applications in a timely and efficient manner in the future.

Last but not least, we had hoped for more movement towards lifting the U.S. tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum as well as Europe’s countermeasures. Businesses across multiple sectors have felt the pain of these tariffs, and we call for their immediate removal.