ROME (Reuters) -Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni welcomed the fact that a trade deal has been reached between the European Union and the United States but said that she would be seeking more details.
Washington struck a framework trade deal with the EU imposing a 15% import tariff on most EU goods.
“I consider it positive that there is an agreement, but if I don’t see the details I am not able to judge it in the best way,” Meloni told journalists on the sidelines of a meeting in Addis Ababa on Sunday.
Italy is one of the biggest European exporters to the U.S., with a trade surplus of more than 40 billion euros ($46.70 billion).
The Italian government, led by a nationalist coalition, had urged its European partners to avoid a direct clash between the two sides of the Atlantic.
In a statement, Meloni said that the agreement “ensures stability”, adding that the 15% “is sustainable, especially if this percentage is not added to previous duties, as was originally planned.”
On Monday, she said “a number of elements are missing”, referencing key details on “particularly sensitive sectors”, such as pharmaceuticals and the automotive industry.
She also emphasised the importance of clarifying potential exemptions for certain agricultural products and gaining a clearer understanding of provisions relating to investments and gas purchases.
Italy is ready to activate support measures at the national level for the sectors that will be particularly affected, and it will ask that they also be activated at the European level.
Sunday’s statement was also signed by the leaders of the other two coalition parties: Antonio Tajani of Forza Italia and Matteo Salvini of the League.
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(Reporting by Sara Rossi, Giselda Vagnoni and Cristina Carlevaro, editing by Diane Craft, Nick Zieminski and Hugh Lawson)
