o
Subject: Digital trade issues
S BRIEFING o
DG Sabine Weyand meeting with
, Director General
of DigitalEurope
Origin: DG TRADE
o
Date: 31 October 2019
o
Place: Brussels
Redactions covered by Art. 4.1 (b)
SCENE SETTER
You will meet with
, Director General of Digital Europe, together with
their Digital Trade Policy Group (three other colleagues).
DigitalEurope is very interested in and familiar with digital trade issues, on which they have
frequent contacts with the Commission. Their key interests are related to data flows and, more
recently, to WTO negotiations on e-commerce.
On data flows, Digital Europe is supportive of provisions establishing an obligation to ensure
data flows and prohibiting unjustified data localisation requirements, on which they fully align
with the US position.
On WTO e-commerce, in April, they published a position paper which included
Recommendations for the WTO Joint Statement Initiative on E-Commerce. They fully support
an ambitious outcome of WTO negotiations on e-commerce, including the extension of the WTO
moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions. On data flows and data localisation,
the paper refers to the relevant provisions of the USMCA and CPTPP as useful benchmarks.
Art. 4.1. (a)
In the past, DigitalEurope also asked for more regular information and briefings on WTO e-
commerce negotiations for stakeholders. You could inform them that DG TRADE is available to
do that and is currently reflecting on how best to organise it (i.e. beyond our regular bilateral
contacts with Digital Europe).
29 October 2019
o
Subject: Digital trade issues
S BRIEFING o
DG Sabine Weyand meeting with
, Director General
of DigitalEurope
Origin: DG TRADE
o
Date: 31 October 2019
o
Place: Brussels
CHECKLIST OF KEY MESSAGES
The EU also attaches great importance to advancing on-going WTO
negotiations on e-commerce.
In the context of moving these negotiations forward, it would be
useful for the EU’s political level to hear the views of industry a bit
more clearly, notably regarding their main asks in these negotiation
(particularly on data flows).
I can also confirm DG TRADE’s commitment and availability for
enhanced interactions with all stakeholders, including industry, about
the WTO negotiations on e-commerce.
29 October 2019