On Tuesday, January 30, 2024, the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) held its fifth ministerial meeting in Washington, D.C. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, and senior National Security Council Staff were joined by EU TTC co-chairs European Commission Executive Vice Presidents Margrethe Vestager and Valdis Dombrovskis. European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton also joined the discussions.
Building on the progress from the May 2023 TTC ministerial meeting in Lulea, Sweden, the U.S. co-chairs stressed the importance of fortifying our collective economic security, including by further de-risking and diversifying of our economies, building resilient supply chains, employing outbound investment mechanisms to safeguard national security-related technologies, enhancing and better coordinating our export control regimes to prevent the exploitation of dual-use technologies, and jointly countering the use of economic coercion and non-market policies and practices by authoritarian actors. They also discussed expanding collaboration to counter the misuse of technology, including countering foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) and attacks against human rights defenders online while safeguarding freedom of expression.
The U.S. co-chairs also discussed the importance of expanding transatlantic cooperation in critical and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), and jointly promoting innovation, security, and trustworthiness across digital ecosystems, including for maintenance and repair of network components. They noted progress made through the TTC Joint Roadmap on Trustworthy AI and Risk Management and resolved to continue to promote interoperability in our emerging approaches to AI governance. They also noted the quickening pace of technological innovation and the essential role the TTC plays in developing responsible rules of the road for critical and emerging technologies, including creating compatible and interoperable standards that reinforce the work of international standards development organizations.
The United States and EU also hosted two stakeholder events on the margins of the TTC: a “Roundtable on the Legacy Semiconductor Supply Chain,” where U.S. and EU industry leaders discussed the current state of the industry, how companies can improve supply chain resilience and transparency, and how governments can help address non-market policies and practices that lead to excessive dependency on any one producing country for legacy semiconductors; and a Transatlantic Initiative for Sustainable Trade (TIST) Stakeholder Event on “Crafting the Transatlantic Green Marketplace,” where participants discussed how to strengthen the transatlantic marketplace as a key factor in the development of sustainable and net-zero economies on both sides of the Atlantic.
The TIST stakeholder event also included a workshop on the “Promotion of Good Quality jobs for a Successful, Just and Inclusive Green Transition,” which focused on labor and business stakeholders exchanging best practices and discussion on ensuring good jobs are outcomes of climate policy and investments. In addition, the United States and European Union received a briefing by the 6G Smart Networks and Services Industry Association and the Next G Alliance on their U.S.-EU Beyond 5G/6G Roadmap, which will inform efforts by U.S. and EU governments to develop common vision on 6G. The United States and EU also welcomed the signing of the U.S.-EU Joint CyberSafe Products Action Plan on the margins of this TTC. With this Action Plan, the two partners look to create a transatlantic marketplace that sets a standard for the cybersecurity of Internet-connected products, ensuring the devices our citizens use in their homes and offices are secure.
The co-chairs intend to convene the sixth TTC ministerial meeting in Belgium in the spring of 2024 to review progress to inform priorities, identify new areas for collaboration, and further deepen the transatlantic partnership on shared priorities.
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