Members of the French Parliament expressed their views on European trade policy at a hearing in the National Assembly with the European Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, and the French Minister for Trade, Franck Riester, on Tuesday 9 March. Many raised concerns about the agreement with Mercosur and insisted on the subject of deforestation in Brazil.
“Isn’t it time to suspend the agreement or renegotiate it?” asked Deputy Jean-Michel Clément, a member of the Libertés et territoires (Liberties and territories) group. Jacques Maire (LREM) also asked for information on the ongoing discussions on additional declarations for the agreement. “Will this cooperation be of a binding nature?” he asked the Commissioner.
The Minister, for his part, reiterated the government’s desire not to ratify the agreement without verifiable commitments linked to sustainable development (see EUROPE 12669/14).
After insisting in his introduction that France would be a major beneficiary of the agreement in terms of exports, the Commissioner indicated that discussions with Mercosur partners are ongoing. “The legal form of the commitments has not yet been determined”, he added.
On this issue, the Head of Unit for the Americas, Agriculture and Food Security at the European Commission’s DG Trade, Rupert Schlegelmilch, gave some clues at an online event on 9 March: “It doesn’t make sense to have mere political statements, but I don’t necessarily think the threat of sanctions is the right way forward. We always emphasise that cooperation is the preferred way”, he said, stressing the need to be “convincing” above all.
China. MPs also expressed some doubts about the investment agreement with China. “We are worried about the will of the Chinese, which gives the impression of trampling on fundamental rights and freedoms”, insisted the chair of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Jean-Louis Bourlanges (MoDem). (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)