The head of diplomacy of the European Union (EU), Josep Borrell, considered this Tuesday that the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA, in English) of the United States “does not respect” the rules of international trade “in many things” .
“The solutions must always respect the rules of international trade and we always defended it, and it is clear that what the United States raised, in many things, does not”he lamented, according to the AFP news agency.
The High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy also assessed that the system chosen by the United States to fighting against climate change, which consists of “massive subsidies to renewable energy producers”, is not the same one that the European bloc chose.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Washington on March 10 to meet with President Joe Biden.
During the meeting, they pledged to avoid negative competition in the renewable energy sector.
The IRA is a huge energy transition aid program launched by the Biden administration, which resolutely supports “Made in America.” with tax benefits for the purchase of electric vehicles, among other measures.
European industrialists fear the consequences that this program may have on the economy of their continent.
Both leaders promised after their meeting to “immediately start negotiating towards a specific agreement on strategic metals” for the energy transition.
When asked by the European deputies about that agreement, Borrell said that he did not know if such an agreement will ever go ahead. “There’s a lot to negotiate,” he said.
