Date: 13 September 2005
 
Speakers: James Elles, MEP, European Parliament
Dan Hamilton, Director, Center for Transatlantic Relations, Johns Hopkins University
Karel Lannoo, Chief Executive, CEPS
Robert G. Liberatore, Group Senior Vice President, Global External Affairs & Public Policy, DaimlerChrysler
John Sammis, Economic Minister Counsellor, US Mission to the EU
Gunnar Wiegand, Head of Unit, Relations with United States & Canada, European Commission.
 
CEPS hosted the launch of a study on transatlantic economy, titled Deep Integration: How Transatlantic Markets are leading Globalization, which was recently published jointly with John Hopkins University. Dan Hamilton, Director of the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the Johns Hopkins University, began the panel discussion of this study by discussing three common myths or misconceptions of transatlantic relations: that globalization is about cheep labor and outsourcing; that international commerce is only about trade; and that transatlantic commerce is on the verge of a “divorce”.
 
This set the stage nicely for discussing what the statistics in this study actually represent. The first point that Mr. Hamilton made was that by any objective measure, by far the deepest or thickest cross-boarder interactions which happen today are across the Atlantic (surpassing relations with ex. China).  Mr. Hamilton also clarified that trade is only a marginal part ( 20 per cent) of international commerce. Affiliate sales, not trade, is the way in which Europe delivers goods and services to America, and 56 per cent of the total output of US affiliates comes from Europe. As to the misconception that transatlantic relations are on the verge of a “divorce”, Hamilton explained the tensions as being due to the fact that the EU and US are literally “in each others business”. Far from diverging from their relationship, conflicts arise exactly because differing systems are constantly coming into contact, and grinding up against each other.
 
 The solution to present conflict, which was reiterated by all members of the panel, was that policies need to be harmonized, and markets need to be opened. This was identified as a method to promote further deepening of transatlantic relations, and growth of economies in both the EU and United States. The area of services was identified as one driving force in transatlantic economy which is currently defined as “a sleeping giant” where many inroads could be made in terms of harmonization and growth.
 
All members of the panel also had specific information to contribute to the discussion, based on their individual areas of expertise. Gunnar Wiegand, Head of Unit Relations with United States and Canada, European Commission, agreed that the area of services was indeed a “sleeping giant”, but also identified it as one of the areas in transatlantic relations which was most difficult in terms of forming political agreements. Wiegand explained a general paradox, that while figures show deeper integration, regulators and legislators are not globalized. He expressed that in political reality, no one wants out sourcing or regulating down (in terms of standards), and feels that politicians need to be reminded of their will.
 
James Elles, MEP, European Parliament, also discussed his thoughts on the deepening of transatlantic market relations. For Elles, this means that there is a necessity for cooperation. The fact that transatlantic relations is being discussed in present agendas identifies that progress has been made, but that overarching goals still need to be made and met. Elles feels this can be achieved by: setting a date for cooperation to be completed; making a detailed list of what needs to be accomplished; conducting studies on an EU/US basis to show the benefits of relations; and all of this needs to come from the governmental level to achieve a broader framework for cooperation.     
 
John Sammis, Economic Minister Counsellor, US Mission to the EU, expressed his belief that transatlantic relations is not about how to create integration, but how to manage it. Sammis sees a need to push for regulatory engagement as well as cooperation. He stated that for execution of management, participants should make a list of “three wishes”, and then monitor development of the “wishes”, in order to keep their end goals in sight.
 
Rob Liberatore, Group Senior Vice President, Global External Affairs and Public Policy, DaimlerChrysler AG, discussed what differences in standards meant in actual terms. It was his contention that harmonization standards are needed, because getting one country to agree to other countries standards is very unlikely. If, instead, standards could be mutually recognized as acceptable, the market could open up for greater growth potential.
 
Karl Lannoo, Chief Executive, CEPS, expressed that most of the problems experienced by the transatlantic market are exactly because it is so deep. He felt that the study on transatlantic economy uncovered some remarkable results, and that the path to future cooperation lies in mutual recognition and continuous dialog.