Irish Whiskey Association Statement on EU/US Trade
The Irish Whiskey Association is honoured to be in Washington, D.C. this week to celebrate the friendship Ireland enjoys with the U.S.
There is no better example of this friendship than the spirits sector – the U.S. is our biggest trading partner, and the export value of Irish drinks is over €800 million per annum.
The European Commission announcement of counter-measures yesterday, implicating US whiskey, along with the statement this morning from President Trump, is extremely concerning to us.
Our products are bound to the land – Irish Whiskey will always be Irish, just as Kentucky bourbon will always be Kentuckian.
There is no winner in a trade war. The imposition of tariffs will impact on our businesses and our consumers. Having our sector implicated in this dispute puts jobs, investments and businesses at risk and has the potential to be devastating for Irish Whiskey.
The EU and US governments introduced tariff-free trade in 1997 and saw the value of the sector increase exponentially in the years that followed, benefitting European and American businesses and consumers alike.
We call on them to continue that legacy and maintain the tariff free environment for EU & US whiskey alike. We note that there is no tariff currently in place, and now is the time for dialogue.
Our experience speaks to the benefits of a free and fair trading relationship, and we will continue to advocate for the reciprocity we’ve enjoyed since 1997 to be reinstated.
The need to remove spirits from this dispute is immediate, and the clock is ticking.
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