Brussels, 11/12/2012 (Agence Europe) - The multipartite agreement with the two Andean countries will apply provisionally pending ratification by national parliaments.
On Tuesday 11 December, the Parliament approved by 486 votes to 147 and 21 abstentions, in Strasbourg, the multipartite free trade agreement between the EU, on one hand, and Colombia and Peru, on the other. The agreement was initialled in March 2011 and signed in June this year. The agreement provides for gradual liberalisation of the trade in goods and services, public procurement and the protection of investment. It also leaves the door wide open for the other countries of the Andean Community, Bolivia and Ecuador, which pulled out of the talks in 2008.
For Colombia and Peru, the largest beneficiaries of customs duties abolition will be fruit producers (especially banana and grape producers), and shrimp fishermen. For the EU, the biggest advantages are expected in the machines, automobile and chemical products sectors. In order to counter the risk of crowding out the banana producers of the EU's outermost regions (Canary Islands, Guadeloupe and the Martinique) from the European market, to the benefit of producers in Colombia and Peru, the deal is accompanied by a stabilisation mechanism for banana production. The agreement also provides a chapter on sustainable trade and development, which commits parties to promoting human rights and environmental standards. The Colombian and Peruvian governments have specifically undertaken to implement a human rights clause, presenting binding and specific roadmaps to the European Parliament. (EH/transl.jl)