Guest essay by Eric Worrall
The EU has directly threatened the USA and all other countries which don’t embrace the “voluntary” Paris Agreement, by insisting ratification of the Paris Agreement be a mandatory clause in all future EU trade deals. But history suggests this is an empty threat.
EU to refuse to sign trade deals with countries that don’t ratify Paris climate change accord
Jon Stone
Monday 12 February 2018 15:00 GMT
Trade chief Cecilia Malmstrom says Paris clause ‘needed in all EU trade agreements’
The European Union will refuse to sign trade deals with countries that do not ratify the Paris climate change agreement and take steps to combat global warming, under a new Brussels policy.
Cecilia Malmstrom, the EU’s trade chief, said a binding reference to the Paris agreement would be “needed in all EU trade agreements” from now on, noting that it had been included in a deal with Japan.
She said upcoming deals with Mexico and the South American trade bloc Mercosur would also include the clause.
European Commission spokesperson confirmed that the new EU policy would also apply to a post-Brexit trade deal with the UK – meaning Britain would risk its trade deal with the bloc were it ever to try to back out of the accord.
The move effectively means the 500-million-citizen bloc is throwing its trade might behind tackling climate change.
But the policy also means a future trade deal with the US as long as Donald Trump is in office is off the table for now. The US President has indicated that he will not sign up to the deal to cut greenhouse emissions and has said he wants to renegotiate it – a plan most other countries, including the UK, have rejected.
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The EU directly named the USA in a statement a few days ago;
EU Tells Trump: No Paris Climate Deal, No Free Trade
Dave Keating , CONTRIBUTOR
FEB 8, 2018
When Donald Trump took office last year, the assumption was that the transatlantic trade and investment partnership was dead.
The controversial free trade deal between the EU and the U.S., known as TTIP, was already years in development and was a big focus in Europe, particularly with left-wing protesters who said the EU would necessarily have to lower its environmental, health and safety standards to American levels. When Trump was elected on an anti-free-trade platform in 2016, these activists found themselves in the uncomfortable position of being on the same side as the new U.S. president.
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It is in this context that France’s foreign affairs minister Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne told the French Parliament last week that his country will insist that TTIP never be revived if Trump carries through on his promise to leave the Paris Agreement.
“One of our main demands is that any country who signs a trade agreement with EU should implement the Paris Agreement on the ground,” Lemoyne said. “No Paris Agreement, no trade agreement. The U.S. knows what to expect.”
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The USA currently has a $184 billion / year trade deficit with the EU.
This isn’t the first time the EU has tried using terms of trade to bully other countries into complying with their green demands. Last time it didn’t work out well for the EU.
EU aircraft carbon emissions tax crashes and burns
Anthony Watts / November 12, 2012
From the BBC comes this bit of good news:
EU suspends aircraft emissions trading rules
The European Union has agreed to suspend its rules that require airlines flying to and from airports in the EU to pay for their carbon emissions.
The rules had been unpopular with countries outside Europe such as the US, China and India.
Climate commissioner Connie Hedegaard said she had proposed “stopping the clock for one year”.
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Read more: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/11/12/aircraft-carbon-emissions-tax-crashes-and-burns/
The EU block likes to pretend they are powerful, but the reality is the EU is falling behind in terms of their importance to global trade. Decades of high taxes and business unfriendly domestic policies have taken their toll.
Like any bully the EU has a track record of rapidly backing down when anyone stands up to them.
The EU is becoming irrelevant in terms of international trade.
This will just make it more so.
[Snip] ’em !!!!!!
In a couple years with the recently imported Iranians leaching off the system, the entire block will be a basket case economy.
Please can I be there when Mercedes, Audi, Porsche, and BMW are told they will be shipping far fewer cars to the USA or paying tariffs. The EU keeps going down this track and Brexit may be the least of their worries, though I am sure Putin and Russian oligarchs will be happy.
The EU has nothing to ‘trade’ … they exiled their industry to China, impoverished their member states and now want to reduce the rest of the developed world to their ‘junk bond’ status.
I never understood, what is a “trade deal”? Is that a discount?
The EU is an empty suit. How the people of Europe allowed non elected bureaucrats to take over their governments is a lesson in subversion and ignorance. The chances of them enforcing trade sanctions over the Paris Agreement with other countries, especially the US, is laughable.
I wouldn’t only stand up to them but would make sure that at least for a time they were forced to feel the pain of making their threats by making them keep their word for a time. Talking to Bullies doesn’t work to stop the aggression just as noted in the article. . Punitive action does. No threats, nor promises, no bargains or negotiations, just make them live for a time by their words so that the message is clear that the US won’t stand for empty threats. As things are going right now with deregulation and the weakening of the dollar things are not looking that great for them over the long haul.
WWI, WWII, and now the EU. The tactics have changed, but the German end-game remains the same.
Does the EU really believe the world can’t live without European products? They tried this stunt once before with the airline industry … and the EU found it had to back down because of adverse repercussions it would have faced.
The EU has 155% of the USA’s 325M population and 97% of the USA’s $18,1T GDP (said another way, the average EU GDP/person is 65% of the USA). EU makes a lot of stuff (cars, Pharma), but with a few exceptions, the EU doesn’t invent stuff.
If the EU was stupid enough (it could be…) to cut itself off from new & cutting edge technology, it would quickly slide towards the Greek economic end of the spectrum.
The good news is this would soon be cheaper for American tourists, and lots of places might reclaim their wonderful bucolic pasts.
This must just be more empty stupid-talk from the desperate Parisites. The EU cannot afford this loss and it is already heading down the toilet economically, politically and culturally.
Some recent – to 2016 – trade stats here:
http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2006/september/tradoc_113465.pdf
I know. As the US oil production keeps ramping up the EU can keep sourcing their oil, along with making protection payments, to Vladimir Putin and/or those fun loving Ayatollahs in Iran.
Making an empty threat is rather stupid. I’m certain we sell far less Ford F150s and Dodge Rams in the EU than they sell Mercedes, BMWs, Maseratis and Ferraris in the US. Go ahead EU, have at it!
Both the Atlantic and Pacific trade deals under the previous administration had backdoor ratification of the Paris Accord, along with the establishment of an “International Tribunal” for enforcement. (This had anti-US bias written all over it, but that is another story.) Those backdoors, which had nothing to do with trade were a big consideration for the current administration to scuttle the deals.
Interesting that the author reminds us of the Airline Carbon Tax. The EU thought they could ram it down our throats, even threatening to suspend landing rights to US carriers. The US carriers said NO, and plans were made to block all EU carriers from the US in retaliation, if needed. Within days, the EU panicked and crumpled like yesterdays newspaper.
It looks like they need a refresher lesson.
“No Paris Agreement, no trade agreement.”
Sounds good to me.
Obama interfered with the UK Brexit vote by saying that if Britain voted to leave the EU, they would be at the end of the line with US trade and other considerations.
Did this move by the EU cement the reality that a non Brexit UK goes to the FRONT of the line?.
The “Art of the Deal”.
EU should only accept tourism that arrives on sail boats, bicycles, or foot….and should only mfg and export the same way…I’ve worked there, their environmental laws are lax compared to the US…dey talk the talk but don’t walk the walk
EU has ironclad rules, which all states except France and Germany have to adhere to.
They need us more than we need them. They know this. It’s a bluff. Against somebody that holds all the cards and has demonstrated as much repeatedly. At their own peril, I suppose.
… yet another attempt to talk people into allowing OTHER countries to tell THIS country (the USA) how to go about its business.
The “U” in “bully” stands for “European UNION”. We may now spell it “beully”.
Yep. Like flooding the 1000 year old food basket of the Somerset Levels, mandating vacuum cleaners that don’t work. The list is long.
They (mainly France) conned the Brits years ago by selling them “Golden Delicious” apples aka surplus pig food. Clever …. but victims eventually learn.
Anyway, what happens if a country signs the trade agreement then pulls out of the Parisite nonsense?
Pretty funny. The US has no trade agreement with the EU. This is why BMW decided to build their cars destined to be imported into the EU in Mexico, which does have a free trade (no tariff) agreement with the EU.
Meanwhile, the New Left tries to blame HRC’s presidential loss on covert Russian influence. They completely forget that Obama publicly threatened the British voters if they voted for Brexit.
Do we actually NEED anything from Europe here in North America? I’m sure we could get along fine without trading with them. Unfortunately here in Canada, we have JT just standing there, a lone voice in the wilderness, talking to himself.
The EU sells their Airbus to Middle eastern airlines.
The Gulf States depend on oil and gas.
Will the EU stop selling Airbus to the Emirates to save our planet?
If they were to do this, Boeing’s Dreamliner would replace them immediately.
I suspect this is more of a veiled threat to other countries’ officials, especially EU countries, that they better stick with the Paris “accord”, or there might be serious repercussions . .