Several EU farming organisations welcomed, on Wednesday 13 March, the outcome of the European Parliament’s vote, which amended the proposal to extend the suspension of tariffs on imports from Ukraine until June 2025 (see EUROPE 13370/14).
The amendments adopted, suggested by the EPP group, provide for the introduction of automatic safeguard measures for wheat, barley, oats, maize, eggs, poultry, sugar and honey products, to be “activated if quantities imported pursuant to this Regulation exceed the arithmetic mean of quantities in 2021, 2022 and 2023”.
According to Copa-Cogeca and other organisations representing the poultry (AVEC), sugar (CEFS) and maize (CEPM) sectors, the reference period chosen by the European Parliament is “better” than the one set out in the proposal (2022 and 2023), even though 2021/2022 would have been preferable. In addition, the inclusion of other affected commodities, such as for example cereals or honey in the automatic triggering system of the safeguard measures, “is most welcomed”, as it addresses the wider concern of different Member States. “It is now essential for the European Parliament to defend its negotiation mandate in the trilogue”, the organisations conclude.
For the time being, the EU Council is divided on the European Parliament’s amendments, and the Belgian Presidency of the EU Council has suggested a single trilogue next week to try to find common ground.
Link to the text amended by the European Parliament: https://aeur.eu/f/bb6 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur, with Léa Marchal)