European Union Commissioner Pierre Moscovici described last week’s G20 meeting as “very interesting,” as he commented on the event on the doorstep of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council meeting on Tuesday.
Speaking in Brussels, Moscovici, stated the G20 was a good chance for the EU to get to know the positions of the new administration in the United States. He added that the EU continues to support multilateralism, the principle of free trade and fighting climate change. He pointed out that the fact that the final communique does not mention the principles does not mean that the EU is “coming back on it commitments.”
He also added that the EU is looking to “build bridges,” and not “walls,” implicating a more internally-focused policy in Washington.
The Trump administration has been calling for international trade that is fair for the United States, pointing out that free trade has its flaws if it is not fair. US government officials described the G20 as a good opportunity for Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to get to know his counterparts and begin revealing Washington’s trade agenda before the G20 leaders’ meeting in July.
