On Wednesday 16 January, MEPs gave their agreement, by 444 votes to 167 with 68 abstentions, to amend the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an association between the EU and Morocco.
The purpose of this amendment is to respond to the judgement of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) of 21 December 2016 which concluded that the EU/Morocco Agreement does not apply to Western Sahara, but that it may be covered, with the explicit consent of the population of this Non-Self-Governing Territory (see EUROPE 11694).
In concrete terms, by adopting the report by Marietje Schaake (ALDE, Netherlands), the European Parliament gives the green light to the conclusion of the Agreement in the form of an exchange of letters between the EU and Rabat on the amendment of Protocols 1 on the arrangements applicable to imports into the Community of agricultural products originating in Morocco and 4 on the definition of the concept of “originating products” and methods of administrative cooperation under that Agreement. Through these changes, Western Saharan products will benefit from the same trade preferences as those granted by the EU to Moroccan products covered by the Association Agreement. The ALDE, EPP, ECR and S&D groups supported these changes, unlike the GUE/NGL and Greens/EFA groups.
In parallel, MEPs adopted another report by Mrs Schaake (442 votes in favour, 172 against and 48 abstentions) which emphasises that this agreement “does not imply any form of recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, which is currently considered by the United Nations as a non-self-governing territory and a large part of which is managed by the Kingdom of Morocco”. “The ratification of the amended liberalisation agreement between the EU and Morocco must be without prejudice to the outcome of the peace process in Western Sahara”, warn MEPs.
While, in their view, “all reasonable and realistic measures” have been taken to obtain information on the consent of the population concerned, through broad consultation, the Court, in its judgement, did not specify how the consent of the population should be expressed and there is therefore some uncertainty surrounding this criterion.
Parliament also urged the Commission and Morocco to implement a mechanism to ensure that Member States’ customs authorities have access to reliable information on products imported into the European Union from Western Sahara, in full compliance with EU customs legislation. The Commission should consider “possibilities that would allow future trade preferences to be effectively granted to all populations residing in Western Sahara", the European Parliament adds.
Refusal to seek the opinion of the ECJ
Although the European Parliament has agreed to the amendments, they are the subject of debate. “The legal fate of Western Sahara has not been resolved. The ECJ blew up a first EU/Morocco agreement, but lobbying is very intense, both in Morocco and in the EU. If an appeal is lodged with the ECJ, I expect this agreement to jump again”, Philippe Lamberts (Greens/EFA, Belgium) regretted to the press.
96 MEPs – mainly Greens/EFA, GUE/NGL and S&D – had therefore tabled a motion for a resolution requesting the Court’s opinion on the compatibility of this agreement with the Treaties, considering that there was “legal uncertainty as to the compatibility of the proposed agreement with the Treaties and in particular the Court’s judgement of 21 December 2016”. The proposal, supported by the rapporteur, Marietje Schaake, was rejected by 210 votes in favour, 414 against and 48 abstentions. The Greens/ALE and GUE/NGL groups voted largely in favour, the S&D divided on the issue, and the EPP, ECR and ALDE voted against. “There is no doubt that the agreement will be brought before the ECJ again” and it is therefore necessary to be “certain that the agreement meets the ECJ’s criteria and that it will not be cancelled again", Mrs Schaake had justified before the vote.
The Greens/EFA also criticised the fact that Mrs Schaake’s report is based on that of her French colleague Patricia Lalonde, who withdrew from the report after the media revealed her links with a pressure group linked to the Moroccan government. Ms Schaake justified herself by stating that the report had automatically been assigned to her as coordinator of the Committee on International Trade (INTA) on behalf of the ALDE group, and that the report was not “a text that [she] drafted or negotiated [herself]”.
Mrs Mogherini in Morocco
In addition, a few minutes after the vote, the European External Action Service announced the visit of the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, to Morocco on Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 January. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant with Hermine Donceel and Lucas Tripoteau)