US/EU Reach Limited Agreement on Aerospace Tariffs but Fall Short

The European Union and the United States eagerly announced today that they resolved their 17-year dispute over aerospace subsidies, but subsidies to Boeing and Airbus will remain in place. CEI trade policy experts praised the cease-fire but urged President Biden to permanently eliminate tariffs.

Ryan Young, CEI Senior Fellow:

“This week’s decision to remove the Boeing-Airbus dispute tariffs was a wise one. But if the goal is to make the aerospace industry more competitive, President Biden and European leaders did not do that. They need to end subsidies that make companies soft and dependent. The best way to counter China’s state-run enterprises is not with our version of the same thing. It is with actual enterprises.” > View the full analysis on CEI.org

Iain Murray, CEI Senior Fellow:

“It is good to see a cease-fire, if not a peace treaty, in the trade war over aircraft subsidies that has been fought since the mid-2000s. In many ways, this dispute paved the way for the attacks on free trade during the Trump era. If President Biden has seen the folly of tit-for-tat tariffs, perhaps he will row back some of the other tariffs he enthusiastically adopted. This new détente should also enable the US and EU to work together in the WTO to address China’s bad actions on trade multilaterally. With the announcement of a new trade deal between the UK and Australia, this is a good day for free traders around the world.”