Issues preventing a strong US-EU alliance on tech and trade remain

European Union officials meet their United States counterparts in Pittsburgh on Wednesday for the first meeting of the EU-US Trade and Tech Council. The council aims to tackle issues challenging the West's influence over technology and trade, including international data flows and AI. Will the recent diplomatic difficulties derail the talks before they get started? 

• Meanwhile, in an op-ed for Barron's, Myron Brilliant, Executive Vice President and Head of International Affairs at the US Chamber of Commerce, discusses the US-EU Trade and Technology Council meeting and questions whether the two sides can see eye-to-eye on data flows and digital policies.  
• Ahead of the inaugural meeting of the US-EU Trade and Technology Council, CNBC reports US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo has said that the US needs to work with Europe and allies “who care about privacy, freedom, individual rights, individual protection,” to address China’s rate of innovation. 
• Google Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Policy Karan Bhatia has said that trans-Atlantic regulatory principles, secure trans-Atlantic cyberspace, legal certainty on data flows, and responsible use of technology should be key issues for the Council. “The EU and U.S. urgently need a reliable, long-term agreement on trans-Atlantic data flows,” he said. “Resolving this issue with a new Privacy Shield will enable Europe and the U.S. to drive trust with allies and globally.” 
• In related news, the US Chamber of Commerce has called for a new agreement on international data transfers, saying data flows are "the lifeblood of the US-EU trade and investment partnership." The organisation said a new Privacy Shield agreement that brings legal certainty to data transfers should be a "top priority" for the US and EU.