Brussels, 08/11/2002 (Agence Europe) - Farmers and their cooperatives expect the Commission to honour not only the spirit but also the letter of the Conclusions of the European Council (in Brussels) providing for compliance with the decisions of Agenda 2000 taken in Berlin, decisions that must be applied until 2006, declared Messrs Gerd Sonnleitner and Marcus H. Borgström, Presidents of COPA (Committee of Agricultural Organisations in the European Union) and COGECA (General Committee of Agricultural Cooperatives in the EEC). They added that it is particularly important for the EU to have a credible negotiating position at the WTO. In a press release, Messrs Sonnleitner and Borgström also draw the Commission's attention to the conclusions by the Heads of State and Government recalling how important it is to maintain multifunctional agriculture in Europe.
The two organisations call on the Commission to give itself sufficient time to prepare for the evolution of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in order to guarantee that the European model of sustainable agriculture in an enlarged Europe is based on a solid base that can stand up to the challenges of globalisation. In parallel, COPA and COGECA recommend that the preparation of CAP to the period after 2006 should coincide, as far as rural development measures are concerned, with the discussions on changes to the regulation on structural funds.
Another reason invoked for insisting on respect of the timetable fixed in the Agenda 2000 is EU enlargement. After accession negotiations on the basis of the existing acquis, say COPA and COGECA, it would be completely unfair for farmers and governments of candidate countries to be confronted by a modified policy without having had the possibility of taking part in its preparation. By way of conclusion, the organisations consider that, even if it has not lived up to all the expectations of farmers in the Member States and candidate countries, the European Council has nonetheless guaranteed the conditions of a stable budget for CAP for a period from 2007 to 2013.