U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin suggested creating a free trade area among G-7 member counties.

He delivered such statement at the meeting with colleagues from G20 countries in Buenos Aires, DW.com  reports.

“If Europe believes in the free trade, then we are ready to sign the contract about the duty-free trade relationships”, Mnuchin emphasized.  

In addition, he noted that three conditions should be fulfilled for that: cancellation of the duties, trade barriers and subventions.

Minister of Economy and Finance of France Bruno Le Maire stated in response that first U.S. should cancel steel and aluminum tariffs as well as refuse from threats to introduce car import duties from EU countries.

“We refuse to conduct negotiations at gunpoint”, Le Maire noted.

Austrian State Secretary of the Ministry of Finance Hubert Fuchs, who represented the EU Council at the meeting, in his turn supported Mnuchin’s suggestion, noting that “even U.S. Minister of Finance advocates the fair and free trade”.

“The problem is that U.S. understands something other under a fair and free trade”, Fuchs continued.

He stated that the cancellation of U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs should not be the condition for trade negotiations of EU and U.S.

“The preliminary conditions never bode well”, Fuchs noted.

European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici stated that after negotiations in Buenos Aires, the disagreements between their participants did not disappear, but the meeting was not intense in general.

The draft final statement says that trade disputes and other political crises increased the risks for the global economic growth. In this regard, it is required to be ready for the dialogue as well as to implement necessary reforms.