On June 27, 2023,
, the EU and Japan held their third High-Level Economic Dialogue (HLED). The meeting centred on economic security following the agreement to expand the scope of the dialogue. The HLED was co-chaired by Executive Vice-President and Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, with Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yoshimasa Hayashi, and Japanese Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry, Yasutoshi Nishimura.
The Executive Vice-President and the Ministers concluded the EU-Japan Digital Trade Principles. This instrument will be key for bilateral trade and investment, as it will establish a common understanding on key issues relevant to digital trade and a joint commitment to an open digital economy, free of unjustified barriers to international trade. It will build on internationally agreed principles such as the G7 Digital Trade Principles and the WTO e-commerce negotiations and it will be non-binding. The Digital Trade Principles will cover data governance, digital trade facilitation, consumer trust and business trust.
Executive Vice-President and Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis said: “At today’s High Level Economic Dialogue, we further strengthened our partnership with Japan, with whom we share values and strategic goals. We agreed to coordinate further on economic security, supply chain resilience and WTO reform. We concluded EU-Japan Digital Trade Principles and progressed negotiations on data flows. Reaching agreement in these areas will benefit businesses on both sides and put us at the cutting edge of the digital economy. All in all, we can say with confidence that the EU-Japan relationship is stronger than ever, which matters enormously in this time of geopolitical uncertainty.”
A press release is available online.
