Paris (AFP)
The Minister for Foreign Trade Franck Riester said on Friday he was "relatively optimistic" about a suspension of US customs taxes on European wines in the context of the Airbus / Boeing dispute, the day after the announcement of an agreement between London and Washington.
This agreement with Joe Biden's US administration to suspend tariffs on British products such as Scotch whiskey is "auspicious", the French minister said on Sud Radio.
Above all, "Katherine Tai who is the new Minister of Foreign Trade, said she was in favor of coming out on top of this Boeing Airbus dispute which is at the origin of the taxes on French wines and spirits and therefore we can have hope and be relatively optimistic about a favorable outcome "to this 16-year-old conflict, he added.
The Minister does not expect a final settlement of this dispute, but first a "suspension for X months of taxes on wines and spirits and on aeronautics, to give us time to come out on top of this litigation, which would make it possible to lift at that time all taxes on all sectors of activity ".
"This trade war with the United States is ridiculous, it was led by Donald Trump, we suffered it and we defended our interests," added Franck Riester, who said he was convinced that it was the European reaction which made "move the American administration".
During her hearing before the Senate at the end of February, the future US Trade Representative Katherine Tai argued the "need for the United States and the EU to unite to find an answer" in this conflict.
Airbus and its American competitor Boeing, and through them the European Union and the United States, have been clashing since October 2004 before the WTO over public aid paid to the two groups, deemed illegal.
The United States was authorized in October 2019 to impose taxes on nearly 7.5 billion dollars (6.8 billion euros) of European goods and services imported each year, up to 25% for wines and spirits, and 15% for Airbus aircraft.
The Biden administration announced on February 11 the maintenance for the moment of additional taxes on certain European products, which entered into force on January 12, a few days before the end of Donald Trump's mandate.
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