On Monday 20 March, the European Parliament's foreign affairs and international trade committees discussed the Western Sahara and the follow-up to the ruling (Case C-104/16) of the European Court of Justice in December 2016 (see EUROPE 11694).
The chairs of the foreign affairs committee, David McAllister (EPP, Germany), and international trade committee, Bernd Lange (S&D, Germany), reiterated the nature of the judgment and especially the difficulty of finding a suitable legal way of applying this judgment. The problems are both legal and political, they said, before inviting the representatives of the European External Action Service (EEAS) and of the European Commission's Trade and Neighbourhood Policy Departments to enlighten the discussion and inform the Parliament of what has already been undertaken.
In general, the conclusion was that the EU intends to fall into line with the Court judgment: "We must – of course – respect the ruling and at the same time preserve relations with this important partnership [Ed: Morocco] with which we have major interests", the head of the EEAS Maghreb division, Vincent Piket, stated, mentioning in particular the areas of security and regional stability through the fight against terrorism and the control of migration flows.
He was questioned by many MEPs who, as at previous meetings on the same subject (see EUROPE 11736), used the same arguments: some favour the relationship with Morocco above any other consideration, while others speak about the duty of respecting the law in the way they interpret the ruling of the Court.
There is no doubt about the duty of respecting the ruling, Piket stated. Like his colleagues from the Commission, he recognised that this judgment should have an impact on the package of agreements with Morocco (association, agricultural and fisheries, in particular). The idea is reportedly "to amend" the agricultural agreement without excluding a re-writing of the association agreement at a later stage.
Towards a special tariff base for Sahrawi products
The Commission and EEAS are "in the process of putting together (a legal document) which remedies the shortfalls identified by the Court" and which will establish an "appropriate tariff base" for the import of products coming from the Western Sahara.
The main areas will be those defined by the Court: the duty to consult the population, assuring it the benefits and guaranteeing that this advantage is sustainable. The need to use an identification of the products would be crucial, the speakers stated. They mentioned the case of Spain which has announced that it will now reportedly distinguish Moroccan products from Sahrawi products. Technically, the procedures are being studied, the Commission representatives stated.
The problem that still continues concerns the modalities for consulting the peoples, which is required by the Court ruling. "The Court does not say how to consult, and in other words, the position of the Polisario is not absolutely defined. In political terms, this is only a recognised partnership – nothing more, nothing less", the EEAS representative stated. The task will be delicate: the European Union does not intend to interfere in a peace process that is going on under the aegis of the UN, Piket stated.
Algeria's threat of "new legal procedures"
Algeria, an active supporter of the Polisario Front, reacted strongly to this discussion. Its ambassador in Brussels, Amar Belani, said that the session had provided "a sorry sight" of the "political calculations" of France and of "certain circles within the European Commission to get around international law" as well as a "biased reading" of the Court ruling.
Belani also attacked the Commission which is apparently only looking for "a simple technical clarification" of the agreements with Morocco. He also accused the French Socialist MEP, Gilles Pargneaux, who he described as "Morocco's authorised zealous sales rep". "If needs be, new judicial procedures could be started so that European law and international law end up being imposed", he said. (Original version in French by Fathi B’Chir)