Brussels, 30/05/2001 (Agence Europe) - At the close of their first meeting on 29 May in Brussels, the Ministers for Trade of the Euro-Mediterranean area (the EU plus its twelve Mediterranean partners) resolved to institutionalise their debate and to make this a permanent part of the Barcelona Process". Meetings will be held annually in the future. The first - formal - session will take place during the first half of 2002 under the Presidency of Spain. In the meantime, working parties have been commissioned with preparing the ground around three issues: services, rules of origin and the legal framework for trade and investment in the Euro-Mediterranean area.
These preliminary discussions were informal and centred around two issues: the future of world trade and current regional developments. The different contributions sparked off lively debate. This was strongly characterised by an evident reticence regarding the adoption of a joint position on the WTO and by criticism of the outcome of the Barcelona Process. Particular criticism was directed at the fact that, five years on, there has been no revitalisation of trade, nor creation of conditions for increased investment attraction. The meeting did not therefore conclude with the publication of a joint declaration. The President issued closing remarks, which expressed the point of view of Europe alone, as several southern Mediterranean ministers were hasty to add. These included the Tunisian Minister of Trade, Tahar Sioud, who represented the Arab countries of the Mediterranean group at the final press conference next to Chairman of the Council, the Swedish Minister of Trade Leif Pagrotsky, and Commissioner Pascal Lamy. The partner countries did not consent to the conference being monopolised by issues linked to the WTO point of view, whereas the EU was keen to obtain the support of developing countries in order to further influence the agenda of the WTO meeting next November. Evidence of this is the importance given to this issue in the resolutions issued in the name of the Presidency.
The partner countries also preferred not to ratify policy on certain aspects linked to the proposed creation of a Mediterranean regional free trade area, whereas the Europeans for their part were desirous of standardising the rules of origin. So far there have been eight different versions in the Mediterranean area alone. The countries of the southern Mediterranean expressed the wish that the conference should not be limited to the harmonisation of existing rules, and that it should open the way to a general re-examination which could help them to construct sub-regional bodies modelled on the four countries of Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan. Their integrated market proposal were positively endorsed by all fifteen. Partner countries also expressed the wish that there should be no undermining of existing rights both in their relations between themselves ("horizontally") and with non-member countries (in particular EEE or future members of the EU). At the press conference, Commissioner Lamy expressed the hope that "common principles" might also be agreed that would apply both to member States and to applicant countries and the Mediterranean partners. The latter expressed the wish that future conferences would give more general attention to all aspects relating to trade (standards and regulations, certification and other measures that constitute non-tariff barriers to trade). The proposed creation of two other working parties - in addition to those for services - appears to address this demand. Preliminary perspectives must be agreed for these three issues before the end of the year, according to Mr. Lamy. The partner countries insisted, however, that the working party on the deregulation of services should not exceed the remit of the bilateral agreements and should not pre-judge the agenda of the forthcoming WTO meeting. Two points shall nevertheless be carried forward: the accent placed on "the need to progressively and reciprocally de-regulate trade in agricultural goods" in accordance with the rules of the WTO and, in addition, the hope that Algeria and Lebanon shall join this world trade organisation, so that all the Mediterranean partner countries will be members.
Tahar Sioud, as spokesperson (though not for Israel, who expressed a wish, according to Mediterranean sources, to embark on an extensive programme of de-regulation) expressed a decided unwillingness to include this issue in the world trade discussions. Mr. Lamy was anxious to moderate these reactions, declaring that the purpose of these Euro-Mediterranean discussions serves no other end than to reach a confirmed agreement in order to be "ready if and when". He believes it essential not to "become entangled in issues of regulations" when regional or global opportunities arise for Cupertino, particularly as regards the services sector. He expressed the further hope that trade should no longer be "the poor relative" of the dialogue commenced five years ago in the Mediterranean, a region afflicted by major handicaps.
The political context was tabled with the intervention by the minister for Palestine who gave an account of the restrictive measures enforced by the Israeli government, which had brought about "the paralysis" of the economy.