According to our information, the European Union’s Member States examined the European Commission’s proposal to increase tariffs on certain food products from Russia and Belarus on Wednesday, 24 April, and agreed on the main principles of the text.
The EU27 would like to slightly change the scope of the products affected by the regulation in order to include, for example, certain legumes, such as chickpeas, or legume flours.
There is still some technical work that needs to be completed before the regulation can be approved by Member States’ permanent representatives to the EU (‘Coreper’) and then by the EU Council. It is reportedly likely that this final stage will take place at the end of May, according to our information.
During the European Council meeting at the end of March, European leaders had welcomed the European Commission’s proposal to increase these tariffs (see EUROPE 13377/1). (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)