Brussels, 04/09/2012 (Agence Europe) - Although it backs the European Commission's idea to reject bids for public contracts in the EU27 from countries whose own public markets are not open to EU27 companies, France has set out four criteria for the signing of the free trade deals currently under negotiation between the EU27 and several key trading partners (see EUROPE 10579).
On an official visit to Brussels on 3 September 2012, the French trade minister, Nicole Bricq, met EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht, Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier, the head of the European Parliament's Foreign Trade Committee, Vital Moreira (S&D, Portugal) and the EP rapporteur on trade reciprocity, Daniel Caspary (EPP, Germany), to tell them that France is very keen on proper reciprocity in the EU's trade deals as a vital prerequisite for European companies to be able to win new markets. “It is unacceptable that Europe's public market should be open to non-EU countries if they do not benefit from equivalent access,” she said. Some 90% of public procurement in Europe is transparent and open, compared with 32% in the United States, 28% in Japan, only 16% in Canada and zero in Brazil, China and India. The minsiter explained that France supports the draft EU regulation unveiled by the European Commission in March to facilitate access to foreign markets for EU27 companies, which foresees the option of rejecting bids for contracts in the EU from countries which have not opened up their own markets to European companies.
Bricq announced that if there is no progress in the area of multilateral trade, then France will impose four conditions for the free trade agreements currently under negotiation with Canada and India and preliminary talks with the United States and Japan - namely reciprocity; a positive impact on the French jobs market; respect of high social and environmental standards; and gradual opening up of markets with effective, fast safeguard measures for sensitive markets. Bricq told Brussels in this connection that France wants the surveillance clause of the EU free trade deal with South Korea to be implemented as soon as possible, a trade deal that came into force on 1 July 2011. Commisioner De Gucht's department assured her on Monday that her request was already being looked at.
Bricq told De Gucht that she approved of the European Commission's plans to launch an investigation into claims of unfair trading conditions in China for solar panels, telecoms and smart networks.
The French minister will travel on to Rome, Berlin and London this week to raise awareness among her counterparts about the question of reciprocity. (EH/transl.fl)