MNI BRIEF: Germany Wants To Relaunch EU-U.S. Trade Talks

German Finance Minister Christian Lindner wants EU-U.S. free trade talks relaunched as Europe seeks a solution to the impact of the U.S. inflation-reduction act, which Brussels says might breach international rules with subsidies to green industry.

“The inflation-reduction act poses challenges for European industries and the U.S. administration has to be aware of the consequences for our single market,” Lindner told reporters as he went into the Eurogroup meeting in Brussels today. “I would like to go even further, probably this is an opportunity to renew the idea of Trans-Atlantic free trade. We can consider a new approach for a Trans-Atlantic free trade agreement.”

The last attempt at an E.U.-US free trade deal, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, started in 2010 and stalled by 2018 as a result of differences between EU member states on the talks.

“We can avoid all mistakes made during the TTIP negotiations. Now in this special world with so much tensions the United States and the European Union should be willing to find common ground,” Lindner said.

But French Finance Minister Bruno LeMaire brushed off the idea, saying it was up to the European Commission to come up with “strong solutions” to the Inflation Reduction Act impasse, which threatens to cut EU-based firms off from U.S. funding and lead to a large-scale exodus of EU businesses to the U.S.