JBCE Trade and Corporate Policy Committees welcomed guests Līga Renkmane, Head of External Trade Policy Division, Latvian Presidency and Kazuhito Asakawa of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA).
Ms. Renkmane outlined the trade priorities of the Latvian Presidency, highlighting three main areas, namely WTO multilateral negotiations including Trade Facilitation Agreement, ITA, Green Goods and TiSA, bilateral trade negotiations including TTIP, EU-Japan Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and EU-Vietnam FTA, and legislative policies including due diligence system for conflict minerals. Many of these correspond with JBCE priorities.
She shared views on the ongoing EU-Japan FTA negotiations and conveyed the Latvian Presidency’s strong willingness to support the FTA and other important trade issues.
Following this discussion, Mr. Asakawa presented JAMA’s activities and stressed the importance of the EU-Japan FTA to improve business environments in both regions, facilitate business activity, and strengthen the existing partnership between the EU and Japan. Thanks to his input, JBCE members gained understanding of the current circumstances in the automotive sector as well as future perspectives.