EU ready to start trade talks with U.S, but Washington not ready: Malmstrom

FILE PHOTO: European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom attends the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, January 24, 2019. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann - Copyright ARND WIEGMANN(Reuters)

By Reuters

Published on 22/05/2019 - 18:34•Updated 25/04/2024 - 22:09

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PARIS (Reuters) - The European Union is ready to start trade negotiations immediately with the United States, but Washington is not ready to negotiate on tariffs, European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters at the OECD in Paris after talks with the U.S. trade representative, Malmstrom said that if the two sides agreed to move ahead it would go quickly. It was "crystal clear", she added, that agriculture would not be in the European negotiating mandate.