GENEVA, Nov 27: There's a twitch in the European air. It's probably too soon to say the old continent strikes back, but signs are emerging across the 15-nation European Union suggesting that sitting between Asia and the Americas, Europe is attempting to wrest some roles it thinks Washington has hijacked by treating Europe as a willing ally rather than a serious partner.

This week the EU, India's largest trading partner (Indo-EU trade is worth some $19.5 billion dollar a year) issued a fresh call in Geneva for the launching of new global trade negotiations and urged governments to work harder at explaining the benefits of free trade to their peoples. The appeals aimed pointedly at the US came in a new report from Brussels to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on EU's trade policies. The EU's Trade Commissioner Sir Leon Britain has personally championed the idea of a `Milennium Round' starting at the turn of the century and Washington does not like the idea. The appeal came on the day the WTO gave EU good marks in the fair trader race and praised its commitment to multilateralism. A new round when promises of the old one have not been kept will not be the interest of developing countries but the EU says the only way to ensure fair play is to have more rules to play fair. Diplomats say the call for a new round is also aimed partly at ensuring that China and Russia -- both waiting to join the WTO -- enter the trading system in a manner that is beneficial to the EU.

From Brussels the EU this week threatened action against the United States it didn't implement a global telecommunications trade pact. The US agreed to ease access to foreign operators from January 1, 1998 but later interpreted that to say it could block entry to foreign companies if they feared a company could hurt competition on the US market or raise trade, national security or other concerns. Such a public interest test, the EU said, is `vague' at best. Earlier this year, the threat of a dispute with the EU helped persuade the US administration to urge Congress to waive restrictions of European businesses in Cuba and Iran while negotiations continue in Brussels. And from Bonn, the Euro-15 said they would maintain pressure on the US for more ambitious tragets to curb outputs of greenhouse gases.

Most of Europe wants industrialised nations to cut their output of gases seen as causing global warming -- particularly carbon dioxide and others released by the burning of fossil fuels -- by 15 per cent by the year 2000 measured against 1990 levels. It criticised as inadequate a US plan that would merely roll back CO2 output to 1990 levels by the turn of the century.

That's a lot of moving and shaking but diplomats say the sting will come in trade which has become the most effective foreign policy tool in recent years beginning with the way the world looks at finance after the Asian tumble. Trade watchers say the Asian currency turmoil showed that Europe was less dependent on south-east Asia than the US is. A clear indication of this came at last week's Europe jobs summit in Luxembourg where the crisis did not figure at all. Last week, Germany, France, Italy and Britian -- the four European members of the G-7 group of industrialised nations -- said they were willing to provide a second line of defence for South Korea. ``This is the first move of Europe trying to get involved in the running of the international financial system,'' a senior European diplomat said. He added that the EU's profile will increase with the launch of the single currency.

This week the WTO hailed the EU for easing trade barriers and steadily opening its internal markets for goods and services to international competition. But, in a wide-ranging report on EU's trade policies the report said there was still high level of protection of key industries like textiles (of interest to India), automobiles and consumer electronics through tariffs and anti-dumping actions as well as in agriculture. ``By and large, the last two years have confirmed the EU's steady progress towards a more liberal external trade regime...'' said the report which is part of a series of regular analyses of trading practices of WTO member countries.

However, the report said, ``as traditional protection at the border is gradually reduced internal obstacles to trade, resource allocation and competitiveness became more apparent.''

Undeterred, the EU wants a new trade round. ``Looking ahead, a key part of the EU's approach to external commercial policy remains its commitment to further multilateral liberalisation focused on the WTO system,'' the EU said. The US has been lukewarm at best to the idea of another trade round arguing the deeper and wider trade liberalisation can be made in specific areas like in financial services.

Recent reversals for the US presidency -- refusal by the Congress to grant him the fast track trade negotiating authority that previous presidents have been granted since 1974, the refusal to honour a US commitment to pay $926 million in debts to the UN and denial of $3.5 billion in loan guarantees for IMF's loan stabilisation programmes -- have all left Washington looking lame and tired. In addition the US has gone hammer and tongs at the WTO ad during President Bill Clinton's first term, imposed new unilateral economic sanctions or threatened legislation to do so on 60 occasions in 35 countries. Compared to that, even an unfair and aggressive EU looks like a champion of multilateralism.

The next transatlantic test of wits and power is slated for next spring when the US seeks Senate approval for bringing the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland into NATO. One view in Europe has it that EU enlargement that takes in these countries as well as Slovenia into the EU fold should precede any military alliance for the latter to be stable.

Another reason, say EU diplomats, for a fresh round that will provide unparalleled opportunities to new members a taste of good ol' free though rule-based trade.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.