Brussels, 24/10/2013 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament is strengthening its draft regulation aimed at enforcing the rights of the EU within the framework of its trade agreements.
The European Parliament approved by a large majority, on Wednesday 23 October, the report by Niccolo Rinaldi (ALDE, Italy), which amends the draft regulation proposed by the Commission end 2012 in order to establish a clear and predictable framework allowing the EU to take implementation measures when its rights are not respected under its trade agreements, either multilaterally or bilaterally, and when its economic interests are at stake (see EUROPE 10754). This endorsement opens the road to negotiations with the Council.
Going with its rapporteur, the Parliament wants the range of retaliatory measures that may be used by the EU in the case of illegal action by its trading partners to be extended to include services, in addition to goods and public procurement. Furthermore, it calls on the Commission to always justify its choice of retaliatory measure before the Parliament.
This new instrument aims to ensure a swifter response from the EU in litigation, and to strengthen the credibility of its threat aimed at deterring its partners from not complying with the bilateral agreements or WTO decisions. Rinaldi explained that, in the absence of cross-cutting legislation for dispute settlement, all contentious procedures are based on decisions on a case-by-case basis, which is very slow and not a good deterrent for countries that do not abide by their contractual obligations.
The regulation has no protectionist objective as it comes in the context of the rules and procedures for bilateral, regional and multilateral dispute settlement, which give the complainant country the right to choose the option of “last resort”, whereby it can temporarily take defensive retaliatory measures against an infringing country which refuses to comply with the decision of a dispute settlement body, Rinaldi explained mid-September.
Rinaldi's colleague, Franck Proust (EPP, France) took the view that the instrument will allow a rebalancing of the trade relations between the EU and its partners. The EU, Proust said in a press release, will now be able to be on an equal footing with its partners and this regulation is of a kind to give weight and margins of manoeuvre in the context of free-trade agreement talks. (EH/transl.jl)