U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Monday that European financing for Airbus could put the U.S.-EU tariff agreement under pressure, raising concern over a longstanding dispute about government support for aircraft makers.
Greer said his office lacked information about the financing and called on the European Union to settle the matter promptly. He said he had believed European subsidies to Airbus had stopped. Greer argued that the package made cross-border aerospace trade less predictable.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced in June that it would make €3 billion ($3.4 billion) available to Airbus, France 24 reported. EIB Vice President Ambroise Fayolle said the funding was intended to support long-range research and innovation for commercial aviation and the security and defense sectors. Fayolle described the package as unprecedented in the bank’s history and said it would give Airbus more room to pursue those investments.
The dispute over support for Airbus and Boeing began in 2004. Washington and Brussels accused each other of backing private aircraft makers in ways they said conflicted with international trade rules. After 17 years of conflict, both sides had imposed duties covering billions of dollars in goods on either side of the Atlantic.
In 2021, the two governments reached a five-year deal during President Joe Biden’s administration. Neither side has restored the tariffs since. Greer urged the EU to resolve the financing issue as soon as possible.
