Brussels: Europe and the Arabs

The Foreign Affairs Council's ministerial meeting on trade is being held today, Thursday, with ministers from across the European Union presenting a progress report on efforts to avoid a full-blown trade war with President Donald Trump.
Today's Trade Council meeting, which focuses on relations with the United States, comes 37 days after the 90-day pause on tough tariffs announced by the White House last month, at a time when the United Kingdom and China are outpacing the European Union in reaching an agreement. Polish Economic Development Minister Michal Baranowski told Playbook before chairing the meeting: "This is a halfway check. We want to hear from the Commission where they stand."
According to Playbook magazine, the European version of Politico, Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovici has done his homework, putting together a package of €50 billion in additional imports in an attempt to appease Washington and permanently drop the tariffs. But Baranowski questioned the plan, revealing that he would be "quite surprised if our positive list [of products we can purchase] is enough to close the deal with the Americans—we're not there yet." Instead, a "frank conversation" with Trump officials would be needed to close the deal.
"I applaud the efforts," Baranowski said of the Commission's work so far. "But when they are achieved, we'll have to wait and see."
According to the same source, if the campaign fails, the EU is in the process of identifying imports on which it will impose counter-tariffs. Today, countries will begin lobbying to ensure their own industries and interests are not affected. The message from the Polish presidency: "Don't worry, they will. But I'm not particularly worried about that... Member states' preferences don't stop us."
But things may not go that far. In a previous report published last night, Politico revealed that the US had taken its first steps in an attempt to avoid reciprocal tariffs. A message from Washington arrived in Brussels this week, marking a significant milestone in positive bilateral cooperation, four diplomats told Camille Gies. Read the full story here.
EU officials continue to grumble about the lack of US representation in Brussels. Mark Gittenstein, an Obama ally, resigned as ambassador to the EU days before Trump's inauguration, and veteran diplomat Norman Thatcher Scharpf, a multilingual Marine veteran, took over as charge d'affaires. Andrew Puzder, a former fast-food executive, was appointed the new ambassador in January.
But Puzder is still waiting to take up the post. His historic domestic violence allegations (which he denies) have complicated his confirmation process in the Senate, and some fear the White House is stalling. Brando Benifei, the MEP who heads the parliament's delegation to the US, says the delay highlights "the fact that the Trump administration does not see the EU as a reliable mediator." He warned that Washington might attempt to bypass Brussels and deal directly with countries, "disintegrating our internal unity."