Brussels, 04/07/2012 (Agence Europe) - During its mandate in the second half of 2012, the Cypriot presidency would like to play a key role in pushing forward negotiations for bilateral free trade agreements.
The Euro-Mediterranean Partnership is particularly high among its list of priorities. This was officially launched with the Barcelona Declaration in 1995. It seeks to create a common area of peace, stability and prosperity in the Euro-Mediterranean area, through a far-reaching free-trade agreement, where the trade in goods, services and investments is substantially liberalised. The Commission recently received a mandate for beginning far-reaching and comprehensive free trade agreements (DCFTA) with Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia, in view of the gradual integration of these economies into a single market. Trade negotiations will begin as soon as the assessment exercises have successfully been completed. The Cypriot Presidency envisages beginning negotiations with one or several countries during its mandate.
The Cypriot Presidency also intends to complete, during its tenure, the negotiations that have already substantially progressed for free trade agreements with Canada, India and Singapore. It would also like to help promote the launch of negotiations for a bilateral investment agreement with China.
The Cypriot Presidency will also keep track of the possible launch in the autumn of negotiations for a free trade agreement with Japan. Nonetheless, several member states at the Council have misgivings in this connection, particularly France and Germany. The situation is similar at the European Parliament, which is demanding that the Council does not authorise the start of negotiations with Tokyo until MEPs have taken a position on the Commission's negotiating brief (the European Commission formally requested this mandate from the EU 27 this week). The question is expected to be debated between now and the EU/Japan summit in the autumn.
Finally, the Cypriot Presidency also intends to give a boost to possible free-trade negotiations with the US. The joint working group set up in 2011 to assess the feasibility of a transatlantic free-trade agreement is expected to present its proposals at the end of this year. The idea is to begin negotiations at the beginning of 2013 and continue them within an 18-month deadline. (EH)