Brace for Europe’s ceaseless green deal

As the EU will continue to enact environmental regulations in the future, Korea must devise detailed countermeasures before it’s too late.

AN PYEONG-EOKThe author is a professor of international relations at Daegu University. President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen pledged to propose a new Clean Industrial Deal in the first 100 days of her new term. On July 18, she was successfully re-elected. As she starts the new term from December 1, she is expected to present a specific picture for the new deal by early March.

The new deal repackaged the Green Deal she had proposed five years ago. The goal of turning Europe into the world’s first carbon neutral continent remains the same, and she will continue to enhance Europe’s competitiveness.

Mentioning “Green Steel,” the EU president promised to encourage investments in energy intensive industries and infrastructure, as well as push deregulations at European levels to swiftly process permits and competitive biddings in related industries. The current circular economy action plan also will be expanded and revised. Given the need for EU-level funding to support related industries, “a competitive fund” will take the role. From next year, 27 EU member countries will negotiate the total EU budget and order of major expenditures for 2028-2035. In the process, the competitive fund will be launched by increasing the EU budget.

In the 2024 European Parliament election in early June, a far-right populist party — which is anti-immigrant, anti-Islam and anti-climate action — won nearly a quarter of the seats. It was expected that the green deal the EU has been ambitiously promoting would be difficult to continue. But considering the speech by the re-elected president and the dynamics within the parliament, the green deal will likely continue though the pace could be adjusted.

The re-elected president sent a message of reconciliation to the farmers. Farmers from EU member countries have gathered in Brussels and protested against climate action since the beginning of the year. The EU gave in to the farmers and promised to adjust the speed of methane gas emission reduction. In the speech, von der Leyen said that she would consult with them more closely when drafting a climate action plan.

The steel and cement industries in Korea, a manufacturing powerhouse, will be greatly affected by the EU’s carbon border tax. As the EU will continue to enact environmental regulations in the future, Korea must devise detailed countermeasures before it’s too late.