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Data: 06/03/2014
TRADE: Newsletter - Weekly digest
EU Trade News: "Conflict minerals, EU-US trade talks"
• "Conflict minerals"
The EU proposes a strategy for ensuring minerals from conflict zones are sourced responsibly
On 5 March EU High Representative (HR) of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton and EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht proposed an integrated EU approach to stop profits from trading minerals being used to fund armed conflicts. The focus of the approach is to make it easier for companies to source tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold responsibly and to encourage legitimate trading channels.
Press release
• EU-US trade talks
4th round of negotiations starts on 10 March
The latest round of trade talks between the EU and the US for a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership will take place in Brussels next week. As part of the EU’s continuing effort to transparency, the Commission is organising a meeting with stakeholders during the round at which stakeholders will have the opportunity to present their views on the negotiations. At the end of the week, the Commission will also organise the usual debriefing session for stakeholders where the EU and US lead negotiators will explain how the talks have gone.
Press release
Stakeholder event
• EU Commissioner Karel De Gucht on …
… the EU – US trade talks
On a personal level, since taking up the post of EU Trade Commissioner, I have been determined to see the EU take concrete steps to stop profits from the trade of minerals fueling conflicts around the globe – but in particular in Africa and the Great Lakes Region, and especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo to be even more precise. This is, of course, most important in order to save lives and stop conflict. But it is also important for you and me in this room, our families and our friends – all increasingly consumers of high-tech products such as smart-phones or tablet computers. These high-tech products all use the type of minerals that can be described as 'conflict minerals'.
Commissioner De Gucht's website
List of speeches by Commissioner De Gucht
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