The trade agreements with Mercosur, Chile and Mexico must be concluded quickly. This was the message repeated by Spain’s Minister for Industry and Trade, Héctor Gómez Hernández, to members of the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade (INTA) on Tuesday 19 September. He outlined the priorities of the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council, which notably defends an open trade policy.
Many members of the INTA Committee asked the Minister how the Spanish Presidency intended to move forward with the agreements under discussion.
In the case of Mercosur, for example, there are blockages on both sides of the Atlantic. However, Mr Gómez Hernández said he was confident and “optimistic” that the discussions on the agreement would be concluded. “We have good relations with these partners, and good progress is being made. I am convinced that we will reach an agreement this half-year, or by 2024 at the latest. It’s not easy, but we have laid the foundations, and the dialogue is ongoing”, he argued.
In his view, the recent statements by the Brazilian President, Lula da Silva, who criticised certain terms of the agreement, are not worrying (see EUROPE 13226/12, 13251/3).
The Spanish minister agreed with several MEPs on the need to conclude certain agreements quickly in order to “avoid third countries with different standards occupying space in this region”. A number of MEPs have expressed concern about China’s growing presence in South America and Africa.
To move in this direction, the EU needs to look at its signature and ratification procedures, according to Héctor Gómez Hernández. Internal procedures need to be “more agile” in order to approve agreements more quickly, he added, considering that the EU’s credibility is at stake.
By the end of the year, the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council hopes to have signed the agreement with Chile and concluded the negotiations with Mexico. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)