Brussels, 19/03/2004 (Agence Europe) - The Agriculture Ministers of the EU will be starting negotiations on Monday, which promise to be tricky, on the proposals for reform in the tobacco, olive oil and cotton sectors. The Irish Presidency, which will be represented by Minister Joe Walsh, announced on Friday that it was determined to reach political agreement on this dossier, whilst acknowledging that the political context "risks complicating negotiations further" (Spanish Minister Miguel Arias Canete is to leave his post and his French counterpart, Hervé Gaymard, will not attend due to regional elections).
On fisheries policy, political agreement is expected on the proposals to reduce accidental by-catch of small cetaceans (dolphins and porpoises). Discussions at Fishery Minister level will by presided by Dermot Ahern.
Mediterranean products: The reform of the tobacco sector will doubtless be the hardest dossier to resolve, as the five main producer countries (Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal and France), who have a blocking minority (38 votes in all, with just 26 votes required), oppose the Commission's strategy to decouple aid fully in three stages. Most of these countries are calling for partial decoupling of aid, a longer transition period than that proposed (2005 to 2007), and the option of postponing the implementation of the new regime to 1 January 2005. The Commission can, however, count on Denmark and Sweden for support, as both countries have long called for an end to aid and for liberalisation of the regime. The German Minister, Renate Künast, whose country does have some tobacco producers, is likely to support the countries which support bottom-up reform, whereas Austria may get behind the "Club of Five".
For olive oil, Spain is calling for a revision of national guaranteed quantities granted to it in 1998 (this is the most controversial point), France and Portugal are calling for new olive plantations (under programmes authorised by the Commission) to receive the aids they are entitled to expect, and Italy wants to increase the threshold of 0.3 hectare (holding surface area) below which decoupling is at 100%. Furthermore, Greece and Spain want to see a change in the reference period retained by the Commission to set the level of aid (they are calling for 5 years instead of 3).
For the cotton reform, two producing countries, Spain and Greece, are opposed to the transfer of a proportion of aid (103 million EUR) to the rural development policy, and are calling for the new regime to apply as of 2007 (not 2005). Greece refuses to accept a reduction in authorised plantation surface area, and Spain is calling for greater flexibility in the decoupling rate (the Commission is proposing 60%, as for olive oil).
Protection of small cetaceans: the dossier has not moved forward an inch since Coreper's meeting of 12 March (EUROPE of 16 March, p.12). The Irish Presidency confirmed on Friday that differences of opinion remain on the three main elements of the proposal; -the implementation of sonar systems to avoid small cetaceans; -ban on drift nets in the Baltic Sea; and having national observers on board boats, to monitor the accidental by-catch of dolphins and porpoises. The only new element- the issue of whether the Community budget should cover the costs of the additional checks (put at 500 EUR a day per observer)- "will be part of the negotiations", said a Presidency source. The Council will also adopt without debate the regulation providing for a definitive ban on the use of bottom trawlers in the protected Scottish coral reef areas (known as the "Darwin Mounds"): see EUROPE of 16 March on the agreement obtained in Coreper.
Other subjects: Commissioner David Byrne will take stock of the results of talks held with the Bush administration of 17 to 19 March in Washington (implementation of bilateral agreement in the veterinary field, Community embargo on poultry and eggs for the United States to due avian influenza, and the possible closing of American borders to French meat products). Austria will raise the problem of harmonising authorisations of pharmaceutical products in the EU: Vienna is recommending a "centralisation" of procedures on the basis of a three-zone authorisation system (northern, central and southern Europe). Germany will asked to be kept abreast of developments in agricultural negotiations between the EU and Mercosur.