Brussels, 23/06/2000 (Agence Europe) - The second round of negotiations between the EU and Chile for an association agreement including trade liberalisation took place this week in Brussels in a "fruitful and fluid manner with top quality mutual exchange of information", said Latin American Director at the European Commission, Francisco Da Camara. This second meeting has allowed working groups to be set in place in the political, commercial and cooperation sectors. The parties exchanged first lists of questions on non-tariff barriers to trade and on their respective customs structures. "The Chilean delegation was accompanied by some twenty experts with whom we had excellent contacts and we made substantial progress on all issues", assured Hervé J ouanjean, Director at the Directorate for Trade at the Commission.
As in the case of parallel negotiations with Mercosur, the parties will not tackle the tariff aspects of trade liberalisation until after July 2001, in the light of negotiations conducted at the WTO. Work could then progress more swiftly with Chile, with the EU having less agricultural sensitivity towards this country than towards the Mercosur countries that export cereals and cattle. "Chile aspires to completing the process before the 2nd EU/Latin America Summit to be held in Madrid in 2002", Chilean Vice Minister for External Relations and Chief Negotiator Heraldo Muño told the press. The Europeans were very reticent about confirming this date. "One must always have ambitious objectives, but we shall not be able to see until after July 2001 where we have got to", pointed out Mr da Camara. "We have a precise working timetable until then and, depending on what happens at the WTO, we shall be able to take a decision in July 2001 on the future guidelines for negotiation", added Hervé Jouanjean.
Heraldo Muño insisted on the political portent of the agreement: the EU is Chile's second commercial partner and investor, but, above all, "our political relations form the cornerstone of the agreement. We share the same democratic values which were even expressed during the difficult period of dictatorship in Chile, which gives our relationship a quality that is superior to others", he states. Relations with the European Union and with Mercosur will be the priorities of Chile during the next six years, he added, in opposition to the purely commercial relations that Chile has or plans to develop with the United States.
Negotiators have not yet tackled the heart of the matter, but neither side expects major difficulties. The Chileans stress, for example, that their production of fruit and vegetables ripen when the same produce is off season in Europe. On the other hand, there could be problems of terminology from the outset: "For us, the questions of competition cover subsidies to farm exports", notes one Chilean diplomat.
In the agricultural sector, some 6% of trade could be considered sensitive, mainly wine. "Chileans assure us that their production cannot develop", states a European source, however. Both parties are preparing to negotiate a mutual recognition agreement for denominations in this sector. Furthermore, the European Union and Chile have negotiated an agreement on phytosanitary controls which do not, however, appear to work, state European sources. This subject could therefore be reintroduced in the negotiations on the association agreement.
Hervé Jouanjean announced that the EU and Chile will be jointly organising, in November in Santiago, a regional conference with the countries of Latin America on multilateral negotiations at the WTO.