I. Introduction
The U.S.-EU Commerce and Expertise Council (TTC) met outdoors Washington, D.C., on December 5, 2022. The assembly was co-chaired by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, U.S. Commerce Consultant Katherine Tai, European Fee Govt Vice President Margrethe Vestager, and European Fee Govt Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis, joined by U.S. Deputy Below Secretary of Labor Thea Lee, Jamaica Minister for Info Communication Expertise Floyd Inexperienced, and Kenya Cupboard Secretary for Info, Communication and the Digital Economic system Eliud Owalo.
The TTC is a key mechanism to help stronger transatlantic relations and to ship concrete outcomes. We reaffirm that worldwide rules-based approaches to commerce, expertise, and innovation which might be based on strong democratic ideas and values can enhance the lives of our residents and generate higher prosperity for folks all over the world. By the TTC’s ten working teams, we’re supporting sustainable, inclusive financial development and improvement, selling a human-centric method to the digital transformation, and making certain that worldwide norms and the worldwide commerce rulebook are revered and replicate our shared values. We’ll proceed to work collectively to modernize and reform the World Commerce Group (WTO) as set out within the WTO MC12 Consequence Doc.
Geostrategic challenges, together with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and elevated assertiveness of autocratic regimes, have strengthened the significance of our shared democratic values, dedication to common human rights, and management position in upholding a world rules-based order. The US and the European Union reiterate our sturdy condemnation of Russia’s unlawful and unjustifiable battle of aggression in opposition to Ukraine and reaffirm our unwavering dedication to face firmly with Ukraine for so long as it takes to make sure Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity. We condemn assaults by Russia on Ukraine’s infrastructure and can proceed supporting Ukraine in securing, sustaining, and rebuilding this infrastructure, together with its telecommunications and web infrastructure. We resolve to proceed to impose extreme and rapid prices on Russia and maintain it accountable for its brutal battle in opposition to Ukraine, together with by means of unprecedented cooperation on sanctions-related export restrictions, and countering Russian disinformation. We may also maintain Belarus to account for its complicity in Russia’s battle. The TTC Working Teams on Export Controls and on Misuse of Expertise have made important contributions to this profitable and ongoing collaboration. The TTC Working Teams on Knowledge Governance and Expertise Platforms and on Misuse of Expertise Threatening Safety and Human Rights are coordinating to grasp and deal with the unfold of Russian info manipulation and interference, significantly within the context of Russia’s aggression in opposition to Ukraine, and its influence on third nations, notably in Africa and Latin-America.
The influence on our provide chains of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has additional underscored that we share an pressing must establish and deal with provide chain vulnerabilities. The US and the European Union acknowledge that the focus of assets in key provide chains can expose our economies to difficult disruptions. We plan to discover coordinated actions to foster diversification and make key provide chains extra resilient.
To help our shared need of tackling local weather change, the USA and the European Union intend to launch a brand new Transatlantic Initiative for Sustainable Commerce to advance our shared goal of attaining a inexperienced and sustainable future. We additionally took inventory of the work of the devoted U.S.-EU Activity Drive on the Inflation Discount Act and famous the preliminary progress made. We acknowledge the EU’s considerations and underline our dedication to deal with them constructively. We underline the TTC’s position in attaining this and in supporting a profitable and mutually supportive inexperienced transition with sturdy, safe, and numerous provide chains that profit companies, staff, and customers on each side of the Atlantic.
The US and the European Union are establishing a Expertise for Development Activity Drive that may pursue our collective goal to acknowledge and develop the expertise of our working-age populations.
II. Key Outcomes of the Third TTC Ministerial
- Digital Infrastructure and Connectivity
Joint Initiatives with Jamaica and Kenya
The US and the European Union are supporting safe and resilient digital connectivity and knowledge and communication expertise and companies (ICTS) provide chains in third nations, supplied by trusted suppliers. As a primary step, we intend to help inclusive ICTS initiatives in Jamaica and Kenya primarily based on our frequent overarching ideas. This work displays our commitments below our World Gateway and Partnership for World Infrastructure and Funding initiatives.
- Cooperation on connectivity with Jamaica: In cooperation with the federal government of Jamaica and different Jamaican stakeholders, we’ll join over 1,000 public colleges and youngsters’s houses round Jamaica to strong, inclusive, and safe web service, strengthen the digital competencies of lecturers, and help using digital applied sciences by micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises. Our efforts may also help Jamaica’s electrical utility, Jamaica Public Service, to develop dependable and reliable public Wi-Fi infrastructure within the New Kingston neighborhood of Jamaica’s capital, with the potential to develop the service throughout the nation. We additionally intend to help safe and resilient rural broadband connectivity supplied by trusted suppliers within the nation.
- Cooperation on connectivity with Kenya: In cooperation with the federal government of Kenya, we’ll help the implementation of Kenya’s 2022-2032 Nationwide Digital Masterplan by increasing college connectivity in Kenya and bridging gaps in last-mile connectivity. First efforts will embrace a examine on scalable options to develop college connectivity in Kenya, constructing fiber optic connections to colleges in distant areas, a coverage roadmap for reasonably priced, safe, reliable and significant connectivity, and coaching choices to develop the following technology of digital professionals. We additionally will present technical help to assist Kenya replace its Info and Communications Act and 5G Technique consistent with the ideas set for high-quality world infrastructure initiatives on the TTC assembly in Paris-Saclay, France on Could 16, 2022.
The US and the European Union intend to develop our coordination on financing digital infrastructure initiatives in third nations, together with by means of a Memorandum of Understanding between the U.S. Growth Finance Company (DFC) and the European Funding Financial institution (EIB), which goals to allow elevated collaboration on financing for safe connectivity in third nations.
Future Safe Connectivity Tasks
The US and the European Union acknowledge the significance of cooperating on belief and safety within the ICT ecosystem. We welcome initiatives that strengthen the resilience of that ecosystem, together with subsea cables. The TTC Working Group on ICTS safety and competitiveness intends to debate transatlantic subsea cables’ connectivity and safety, together with different routes, such because the transatlantic route to attach Europe, North America and Asia. We additionally welcome provider diversification efforts in ICTS provide chains and proceed to debate market developments in the direction of open, interoperable approaches, alongside trusted, established architectures, in a expertise impartial means.
B. Cooperation on New and Rising Applied sciences
Synthetic Intelligence (AI) Roadmap and Pilot Undertaking on Privateness-Enhancing Applied sciences and Collaboration on AI and Computing Analysis for the Public Good
To meet our dedication on creating and implementing reliable AI, the USA and the European Union have issued a primary Joint Roadmap on Evaluation and Measurement Tools for Reliable AI and Threat Administration (AI Roadmap) and picked up views from related stakeholders. This roadmap will inform our approaches to AI threat administration and reliable AI on each side of the Atlantic, and advance collaborative approaches in worldwide requirements our bodies associated to AI. Together with this effort, we purpose to construct a shared repository of metrics for measuring AI trustworthiness and threat administration strategies, which might help ongoing work in different settings such because the OECD and GPAI. Our cooperation will allow reliable AI techniques that improve innovation, decrease obstacles to commerce, bolster market competitors, operationalize frequent values, and defend the common human rights and dignity of our residents.
Recognizing the significance of privateness in advancing accountable AI improvement, the USA and the European Union will work on a pilot mission to evaluate using privateness enhancing applied sciences and artificial knowledge in well being and drugs, consistent with relevant knowledge safety guidelines.
A joint study on the influence of AI on the workforce was finalized, with U.S. and EU case research on hiring and logistics.
The US and European Fee intend to deliver collectively specialists to discover collaboration on analysis initiatives in synthetic intelligence and computing, that may profit different companion nations and the worldwide scientific neighborhood. This cooperation will purpose at collectively addressing challenges in key focus areas akin to excessive climate and local weather forecasting; well being and drugs; electrical grid optimization; agriculture optimization; and emergency response administration.
Collaboration on Quantum
The US and the European Union plan to determine an professional job pressure to scale back obstacles to analysis and improvement collaboration on quantum info science and expertise, develop frequent frameworks for assessing expertise readiness, talk about mental property, and export control-related points as applicable, and work collectively to advance worldwide requirements. This method might function a foundation for extra enhanced cooperation in different rising expertise areas.
Electrical Car Charging
On Could 16, 2022, on the TTC assembly in Paris-Saclay, the USA and the European Union determined to cooperate on Megawatt Charging Techniques (MCS) commonplace for heavy-duty autos. We welcome the progress on the bodily prototype developed by trade. We intend to proceed working in the direction of a typical worldwide commonplace to be adopted by 2024 on the newest to supply the best stage of interoperability, security and safety.
In parallel, we intend to develop in 2023 joint suggestions for government-funded implementation of electro-mobility charging infrastructure that goals to advance electrical automobile adoption in the USA and the European Union, in addition to suggestions for future public demonstrations of Car to Grid Integration pilots. As intermediate steps, the USA and the European Union organized a stakeholder convention, are publishing the outcomes of the continuing analysis work, and have ready public information on vehicle-to-grid integration and sensible charging interoperability.
Different Requirements and Analysis Cooperation
We’ve got launched workstreams to extend requirements cooperation on Additive Manufacturing, Recycling of Plastics, and Digital Identification, with plans to launch new workstreams on Submit-Quantum Encryption and Web of Issues (IoT), with an preliminary concentrate on technical and efficiency requirements for cybersecurity to be mentioned within the U.S.-EU Cyber Dialogue.
Following the signing of the Administrative Association in Could 2022, we rolled out the Strategic Requirements Info (SSI) mechanism, which can allow the USA and European Union to voluntarily share details about worldwide standardization actions and promptly react to frequent strategic points. This mechanism will allow deepened cooperation to assist form world requirements at worldwide establishments such because the Worldwide Telecommunication Union (ITU), the place we look ahead to working with all ITU members and its new management.
Seeking to the following TTC ministerial, and in coordination with key stakeholders, the USA and the EU intend to develop a typical imaginative and prescient on analysis and improvement past 5G and 6G.
- Constructing Resilient Semiconductor Provide Chains
For the reason that TTC ministerial assembly in Paris-Saclay, the USA handed the CHIPS and Science Act into legislation, and the European Chips Act has made regular progress within the co-legislative course of. The US and the European Union acknowledge the significance of cooperating on selling resilient provide chains.
To attain this, the U.S. Division of Commerce and the European Fee are coming into into an administrative association to implement an early warning mechanism to deal with and mitigate semiconductor provide chain disruptions in a cooperative means. The mechanism attracts on the outcomes of final summer time’s pilot during which the USA and the European Union explored and examined approaches to the change of data and cooperation in case of disruptive occasions.
Transparency is a key instrument to keep away from considerations over public help packages. At the moment, the U.S. Division of Commerce and the European Fee are coming into into an administrative association memorializing a typical mechanism for reciprocal sharing of details about public help supplied to the semiconductor sector to help transparency. We intend to work with different likeminded nations to make comparable commitments to transparency.
For our respective public help packages, we may also search to change info and methodologies, share finest practices, and develop a typical understanding of market dynamics. This contains:
- Working with trade to advertise initiatives geared toward advancing the transparency of demand for semiconductors;
- Bettering our understanding of forecasted world semiconductor demand to tell our frequent coverage goal of avoiding over capability and bottlenecks. For this objective, we anticipate to fulfill often and share info on demand forecast methodologies;
- Exchanging info and finest practices concerning funding approaches and phrases and situations for public help;
- Exchanging areas of curiosity and exploring cooperative initiatives in analysis in semiconductors.
Constructing on this baseline of transparency, cooperation on potential disruptions, and a typical understanding of world demand, we’ll work to keep away from subsidy races and market distortions, and guarantee a extra resilient, sustainable and revolutionary semiconductors worth chain.
D. Selling Our Values On-line
Declaration for the Way forward for the Web
The ideas of the Declaration for the Way forward for the Web (DFI) – safety of common human rights and basic freedoms, a worldwide web, and inclusive and reasonably priced entry to the Web– are world in scope and luxuriate in help from the USA and the European Union. The US and the European Union once more demonstrated their dedication to those ideas on November 2, 2022, in Prague, the place they engaged with the multi-stakeholder neighborhood, welcomed new nations that endorsed the Declaration, and reaffirmed their dedication to its imaginative and prescient and ideas.
Defending Human Rights Defenders On-line
The US and the European Union are deepening cooperation and mutual studying between U.S.- and EU-funded emergency mechanisms, in an effort to develop assets in help of human rights defenders worldwide. We promote an open, free, world, interoperable, dependable, and safe Web, consistent with common human rights, and search to remove using arbitrary and illegal surveillance to focus on human rights defenders. To underline our shared commitments, the European Union and the USA have released a joint statement on defending human rights defenders on-line.
Addressing Web Shutdowns
The US and the European Union reiterate our alarm on the more and more entrenched observe of government-imposed Web shutdowns. To deal with this challenge, now we have facilitated the creation of a multi-stakeholder group of technical specialists who will doc Web shutdowns and their results on society as quickly and comprehensively as doable. The group launched its first report on current Web shutdowns. We look ahead to drawing on the findings of this report and future ones in our diplomatic work.
- Enhancing Transatlantic Commerce
Growing the Use of Digital Instruments
Digital expertise could make it simpler for corporations, significantly small- and medium-sized enterprises, to have interaction in commerce. Previous to the following TTC co-chairs assembly, the USA and the European Union subsequently plan to compile and change info on respective initiatives to make use of digital expertise to simplify or scale back the price of business actors’ interactions with our governments in relation to trade-related coverage, authorized necessities, or regulatory necessities. The US and the European Union intend to then construct on this info change to develop joint finest practices for using digital instruments and to debate how finest to advertise compatibility of such digital instruments.
Mutual Recognition Agreements and Conformity Evaluation-Associated Initiatives
The US and the European Union acknowledge the significance of mutual recognition agreements and conformity assessment-related initiatives for U.S. and EU stakeholders engaged in transatlantic commerce in a spread of sectors. Earlier than the following TTC co-chairs assembly, the USA and the European Union plan to discover methods during which the elevated use of digital expertise, the place permissible, might assist U.S. and EU stakeholders higher make the most of present mutual recognition agreements to facilitate elevated transatlantic commerce.
The US and the European Union may also discover the feasibility of extending the scope of the prevailing U.S.-EU Marine Gear Mutual Recognition Settlement to incorporate sure radio tools.
The US and the European Union additionally help regulators’ work on contemplating the mandatory steps to increase the scope of the EU-U.S. Mutual Recognition Settlement annex for Pharmaceutical Good Manufacturing Practices to incorporate vaccines and plasma-derived prescribed drugs for human use, as mentioned by the Joint Sectoral Committee.
With a view to offering mutual advantages and enhancing transatlantic commerce, the USA and the European Union will proceed exploring alternatives to enhance cooperation in conformity evaluation, together with in equipment and different sectors. This work will embrace exploring alternatives to enhance cooperation on horizontal approaches to conformity evaluation.
- Commerce, Safety and Financial Prosperity
Cooperation on Export Controls and Sanction-Associated Export Restrictions
Relating to cooperation on export management, we’re simplify transatlantic commerce with regard to exports and re-exports of dual-use gadgets and applied sciences whereas making certain applicable safety in opposition to misuse by means of pilot change of data on the disposition of U.S. exports to Europe and vice versa. We’re facilitating commerce between the USA and the European Union by extra coordinated adoption and publication of multilateral management listing revisions. We proceed to seek the advice of on new regulatory actions. We’re additionally planning to conduct coordinated export management outreach with companions. We’re taking extra steps to boost enforcement collaboration between the USA and the European Union, together with by means of the change of finest practices as applicable and with a view to selling the constant software of sanction-related export restrictions concentrating on Russia and Belarus by means of common info change, together with concerning authorization and denial choices. Lastly, the USA and the European Union will cooperate on the export controls of delicate and rising applied sciences, whereas making certain applicable safety in opposition to misuse with a view to facilitate legit transatlantic commerce and analysis pursuits.
Funding Screening
We’ve got deepened our cooperation on funding screening by means of technical exchanges, together with an in-person tabletop train in Brussels. We additionally proceed to debate safety dangers associated to particular delicate applied sciences, together with these associated to important infrastructure, and to holistically assess the coverage instruments accessible to deal with these dangers. The US and the European Union underscore the significance of complete, strong international funding screening mechanisms on each side of the Atlantic in an effort to deal with dangers to nationwide safety and, throughout the European Union, for public order, whereas remaining open for funding. The US and the European Union will proceed to help the event and implementation of those mechanisms. The working group will likely be internet hosting a public stakeholder outreach occasion on the work of the Funding Screening Working Group in mid-December.
Addressing Non-Market Financial Insurance policies and Practices
The US and the European Union have shared considerations concerning the risk posed by a spread of non-market insurance policies and practices, akin to these used within the medical units sector and people involving government-owned or government-controlled funding funds. Following enter obtained from stakeholders, the USA and the European Union have began exchanging info in the marketplace scenario of U.S. and EU medical units corporations in China, in an effort to higher perceive the influence of non-market insurance policies and practices on U.S. and EU corporations. The US and the European Union are additionally deepening their exchanges to establish shared considerations referring to rising use of the aforementioned funding funds. The 2 sides plan to work collectively on exploring which coverage instruments might deal with non-market insurance policies and practices, together with these affecting our medical units corporations. To that finish, we’ll proceed constructing a shared understanding of China’s financial and industrial directives and different non-market insurance policies and practices, and develop coordinated motion to foster provide chain diversification, construct resilience to financial coercion, and scale back dependencies.
Addressing Financial Coercion
The US and the European Union are more and more involved with using financial coercion that that seeks to undermine our legit decisions and people of our companions in any respect ranges of improvement, in addition to world safety and stability. We resolve to establish and deal with financial coercion and discover potential coordinated or joint efforts, bilaterally and with different likeminded companions, to enhance our evaluation, preparedness, resilience, deterrence, and responses to financial coercion.
- Commerce-Associated Surroundings, Labor, and Well being Initiatives
Transatlantic Initiative on Sustainable Commerce
The US and the European Union have already taken, and can proceed to take, vital coverage steps to scale back carbon emissions and promote the accelerated deployment and uptake of environmental applied sciences. At the moment we launch a transatlantic initiative on sustainable commerce.
This initiative will improve work throughout the TTC that strives to help the transition to low-carbon economies by figuring out actions in key areas of commerce and environmental sustainability that help our shared twin objectives of a inexperienced and sustainable future and to extend transatlantic commerce and funding. We intend to discover areas of cooperation to help these twin objectives, together with the place there’s alternative to measurably decarbonize our power intensive industries, and facilitate the deployment of products and companies important to the transition to extra round, and net-zero, economies.
Commerce and Labor Dialogue
The primary principal-level session of Commerce and Labor Dialogue (TALD) provided a chance to change views with senior representatives from labor, enterprise, and authorities on each side of the Atlantic. Throughout at the moment’s assembly, we constructed on the technical assembly of September 20, 2022 and mentioned the important significance of eradicating compelled labor in world commerce and provide chains. We explored how we are able to translate shared transatlantic values regarding combatting compelled labor into concrete actions that promote internationally acknowledged labor rights, and promote resilient and sustainable commerce and provide chains.
Well being Info for Analysis
The US and the European Union intend to work collectively intensively within the applicable fora to facilitate the change of well being info to help analysis, innovation, and developments in public well being in compliance with relevant authorized necessities governing the safety of knowledge, together with the safety of well being knowledge.
H. Creating Expertise for the Digital Transition and Financial Development
The US and the European Union are launching a Expertise for Development Activity Drive that may deliver collectively authorities and personal sector leaders from enterprise, labor, and organizations that present coaching, constructing on present initiatives on each side of the Atlantic. The aim of the duty pressure is to change finest practices, and to function a catalyst for revolutionary expertise insurance policies.
We’ve got a collective goal to develop techniques of coaching for our working-age populations and technique of recognizing the expertise of all our folks. The Expertise for Development Activity Drive will advise the TTC on the actions wanted to realize this. It is going to work with and encourage our respective communities to study from one another, promote frequent taxonomies and instruments, and encourage innovation on coaching packages; have interaction the general public on the rewarding careers in expertise sectors, together with a concentrate on underrepresented communities; change on coaching packages that meet the altering calls for of the market; construct a talented workforce that fosters development and uninterrupted provide chains; facilitate small- and medium-sized companies entry to related expert professionals to foster competitors; and assist generate middle-income jobs to create a extra resilient and equitable center class.
III. Conclusion
These outcomes symbolize tangible progress throughout all workstreams established below the TTC. We’re dedicated to advancing these initiatives and creating new ones as we deepen and develop the transatlantic financial relationship, primarily based on our shared values and ideas. The co-chairs intend to fulfill once more in mid-2023 in Europe to evaluation our joint work and talk about new methods to develop our partnership.