The EU is discussing how much protectionism will be implemented in Granada: “We must protect our economy”

Eldest The emphasis of the text is on economic issues.The other two important issues of this informal Council, to which he devoted five paragraphs, are immigration and expansion, and are addressed in a single paragraph. If there is no agreement, the final declaration may change or even not be approved.

The document begins: “We, EU leaders, met in Grenada to mark the beginning of the process that will define the Union’s political direction and priorities for the coming years.” The pandemic and the crisis resulting from Russian aggression, he continues, “underlined the need to expand our sovereignty and make important decisions.” Protect our citizens and economies”.

Everyone agrees that the EU must be maintained as a competitive space in a “changing world”. Differences, according to diplomatic sources, lie in how to do this. Countries such as France advocate more protectionist measures. For example, in the yet-to-be-completed agreement with Brazil and Argentina, among other Mercosur countries, Paris calls for sanctions on agricultural producers who do not comply with the same environmental requirements as European producers. According to Moncloa sources, Spain argues that the “strategic autonomy” that the EU should defend should be “very, very open” to the world. But at the same time, the Government of Pedro Sánchez argues that: strengthening barriers to entry for “non-affiliated” governments” in key strategic companies.

Debates in Granada

Ursula von der Leyen had already set the tone for the debate when she arrived at the Granada Conference Centre. The chairman of the commission reminded that what will be discussed today, among other issues, is the evolution of technology. Strategic Agenda The EU determined in Versailles (France) in 2019. “We have moved up the mountains since then. For example, in energy or microchips, which is one of the keywords at the moment,” said the German.

The final declaration under discussion calls for strengthening “long-term competitiveness” to “ensure that the EU has the necessary tools to guarantee sustainable and inclusive growth (…) in this critical decade”.

One of the risks of the protectionist tendencies of some EU States is that they will also affect the European single market. In this sense, the text “ Efforts to create a single market more harmonious, innovative and interconnected (…) always remaining open.”

Endurance 2030

Pedro Sánchez focused on the re-industrialization of Europe when presenting Spain’s priorities in this period of his presidency of the EU Council: After decades of globalization and displacement. In this sense, the Granada meeting discusses the need to “strengthen” the European Union’s “industrial, technological and commercial power” position, but focuses on the sectors in which it is currently a leader. the possibility of becoming one of them in the future.

The EU has a large trade deficit with China (400 billion euros), but a trade surplus with the USA (155 billion euros). In her recent State of the Union speech, Ursula von der Leyen unexpectedly announced an investigation against China for oversubsidizing its electric cars in particular, and warned more generally against the Asian giant’s protectionist practices in green technologies; It caused the closure of thousands of European companies, she says.

For this summit, Spain is bringing to the agenda a strategic document that is being prepared by the Spanish Government’s recently created National Foresight and Strategy Office. The result is Resilience 2030: an 80-page text, prepared by more than 250 experts from 27 member countries and in collaboration with 80 ministries, the European Commission and the EU Council.

This document sets out the music and lyrics that Spain proposes to avoid future risks within the Union. they call him “clear strategic autonomy”. One of the unknowns of the Granada meeting is how much of the language of that text will be transferred to the final declaration.

For now, the draft addresses the need for the EU to continue building trade alliances. “It is now more important than ever that we collaborate to strengthen and diversify our value chains. partnership, trade and investment agreements “To achieve our zero-emission targets and strengthen the health of our preparedness for future emergencies,” the conclusions state, “this work requires revitalizing international trade, in which the World Trade Organization plays a fundamental role.”