British Defence Minister Wes Streeting warned the European Union on Monday against excluding the UK from the 'Made in Europe' initiative to support industry, weeks before an upcoming summit between the bloc and London.
Agence France-Presse quoted Streeting as saying before his talks with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas in Brussels: "We must be careful" to avoid the Made in Europe initiative turning into "protectionist measures that harm itself."
Summit issues
Today's talks come ahead of a summit in Brussels on the 20th of this month, bringing together EU leaders and British Prime Minister Andy Burnham. Burnham said the long-awaited meeting would offer an opportunity to start a "serious dialogue" on the long-term relationship between the UK and the European bloc, a decade after British voters voted to leave the EU.
Exclusion fears
The 'Made in Europe' file will be one of the most prominent issues raised, although it is not officially on the summit agenda. The EU is working to strengthen local sectors such as cars and defence by requiring companies to buy European products if they want to receive public funds, but these efforts have raised concerns in London about the possibility of excluding the UK.
With the EU's efforts to reduce reliance on non-European companies in developing artificial intelligence and cloud computing, London fears that new digital rules also being prepared could lead to the exclusion of British companies. London and Brussels hope to reach agreements on food and beverage trade, youth mobility, and avoiding European taxes on carbon emissions during the upcoming summit talks.
The EU also hopes to make progress on reducing the fees paid by EU students to attend British universities. The bloc's capitals are scheduled to discuss the draft joint statement of the summit during a meeting of ambassadors in Brussels on Wednesday.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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