Brussels, 27/02/2001 (Agence Europe) - As expected, on Tuesday the EU/Mexico Joint Council ratified the comprehensive partnership and trade liberalisation agreement signed in November 1999. The services, investment and intellectual property chapter will take effect on 1 March (see EUROPE of 23 February, p.8, for details).
"It is a question of the first free trade area in the services sector", underlined the European Commissioner for Trade, Pascal Lamy, who indicated that, since the entry into force of the section in the agreement concerning the liberalisation of goods, in July 1999, European exports to Mexico have increased 35% and Mexican exports 55%. Major European companies, such as Renault, Volkswagen, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya or Banco Santander already benefit from the agreement and other are preparing to follow, he indicated. EU/Mexico trade in the field of services totalled in 1999 more than EUR 3 billion, according to Eurostat statistics.
Mr Lamy admitted that we still have work to do to complete the liberalisation in the field of services, goods and investments within three years and to achieve an agreement on the mutual recognition of wines. We have started to define the timetable on these points, added the Mexican Secretary of State for the Economy, Luis Ernesto Derbez. The two parties are considering the creation of a "business dialogue" and a forum of representatives from civil society, also underlined Mr Lamy.
The European and Mexican Ministers held on this occasion their first formal meeting of "political dialogue", notably concentrating on the Chiapas and the UN reform. We welcomed the decision by the Mexican government to open the dialogue with the Zapatistas as well as its initiatives in the field of human rights, indicated the EU Council President, Anna Lindh. The Mexican Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jorge Castaneda, also broached the issue of Chiapas and the march on Mexico by the second in command Marcos, during his meetings, on Monday, with representatives of EP political groups.