The European Commission (CE) proposed provisional pacts on Wednesday to apply “as soon as possible” the commercial part of the broad agreements that it negotiated with Mercosur and Mexico, which dodges that they have to be approved individually by each Member State.
In addition, the Community Executive proposed a specific legal act on how it will apply the safeguarding clause of the agreement with the South American block (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay), with which it wants to clarify doubts against countries such as France, the most reluctant to support the pact.
“We have to accelerate our way of acting, what we do, how we negotiate, how we really get our friends and partners who share the philosophy of free and fair trade and other types of trade are closer to us more,” said the European Commissioner for Commerce, Maros Sefcovic, in a press conference.
SEFCOVIC presented the CE proposal that provisionally apply the commercial part of the Association Agreement with Mercosur – which will create the largest free trade zone in the world – and the modernized global agreement with Mexico through interim pacts, which will be replaced by general agreements with also political content when the twenty -seven approves it individually.
“They are not only commercial agreements, but strategic instruments that will contribute to define the role of Europe in the world economy during the next decades,” said the Slovak politician.
It made it clear that the decision to separate a first commercial commercial agreement of the agreed block is because they can be approved rapidly and do not cease to “have relevance.”
Commercial policy in the EU is in community hands exclusively and that pillar of the agreements can get ahead with a qualified majority in the Council (55% of the Member States, which means 15 countries that represent at least 65% of the population of the Union) and the consent of the European Parliament.
However, association agreements, which enter the political field in addition to the commercial, must receive the approval of national parliaments, which has been delaying in recent years the entry into force of such covenants or even putting their application at risk as in the case of the agreement with Canada (CETA), that the Parliament of the Belgian region of Valonia was about to lie.
“Notice in the dynamics we are living at this time. I mean that we really have to fight for each access to the market,” Sefcovic emphasized, which has just concluded a difficult negotiation with the United States to avoid an aggressive climb of tariffs.
“The agreements with Mercosur and Mexico are milestones. Europe is committed to diversification. It means new associations, with new opportunities,” said the president of the CE, Ursula von der Leyen, who added that European companies and agri -food sector “will benefit from the reduction of tariffs and costs” and “will be more competitive worldwide.”
Read more: European Union will approve commercial agreements with Mercosur and Mexico
This will involve EU agreements with Mexico and Mercosur
For his part, the president of the European Council, António Costa, said that “now corresponds to Member States to make decisions.”
“The EU is stronger when it forges balanced agreements with our partners, agreements that benefit both parties. The EU gives its best when it contributes to prosperity inside and outside our borders,” he said.
Sefcovic hoped that the agreement with Mercosur can complete its approval process at the end of the year and that the Pact with Mexico follows a “similar calendar”.
In the case of Mercosur, the commissioner predicted a saving of more than 4,000 million euros a year in customs rights for European exporters and a 39% increase in their exports, which represents about 50,000 million euros.
In the case of Mexico, the second largest commercial partner in the EU in Latin America, highlighted the greatest access to essential raw materials, opening opportunities in public procurement and digital services, and eliminating almost all tariffs on agri -food exports.
The European employers, Businesseurope, considered “more crucial than ever” to conclude these agreements, while the wine sector stressed that they will contribute “clear benefits” without entraating risks, although “they cannot replace” the losses suffered in the US market.
However, Via Campesina, who represents the small farmers, warned that the agreement with the Mercosur and the Commercial Pact with the EU put their livelihoods at risk, so they have summoned a demonstration on Thursday in Brussels.
With EFE information
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