Brussels, 11/12/2008 (Agence Europe) - Syria and the European Commission will earmark an Association Agreement in Damascus on 14 December 2008 that will follow on from the 2007 Cooperation Agreement. The pencilling of the deal is just the first stage in a procedure which it is hoped will be speedier and more successful than the one initiated in 2004 (where the final deal was never signed). The previous agreement was not signed because of opposition from some EU Member States (France and the United Kingdom in particular) which did not favour the opening of relations with a state so openly hostile to Israel and which was occupying Lebanon. The deal remained on the back burner at the Council until new political signals emerged like the EU's decision to enter talks with Syria to counter Iran's influence and encourage Syria to move in the direction of indirect dialogue with Israel (under the auspices of Turkey) and to follow through on its pledges to normalise relations with Lebanon. The earmarking of the deal on 14 December will mark the end of a round of negotiations that were formally launched in 1998 but only started in earnest in 2002 when Syria relinquished its reluctance to consider opening up the economy.
The Association Agreement with Syria is of the same nature as the Association Agreements between the EU and other countries around the southern Mediterranean rim because Syria is a full member of EuroMed dialogue.
The agreement includes a political section which aims to introduce regular political dialogue on democratic principles, human rights, counter-terror and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The economic section will formalise cooperation that is already up and running to support economic and administrative reforms and, after a twelve year period, establish a free trade zone for industry. This section will also cover trade in goods and services, rules on the award of public tender contracts, protection of intellectual property rights and cooperation in a wide array of areas including transport, customs, tourism and development, and dispute-settlement measures that comply with World Trade Organisation rules. The agreement submitted to the Council in 2004 had been updated in negotiations to bring it in line with enlargement of the EU and reforms in Syria on regulatory and customs issues. The agreement includes a chapter on cooperation in social and cultural affairs.
EU exports to Syria were worth €3.3 billion in 2007 and comprised the sale of machinery and transport equipment (27%), automotive equipment (7%) and chemicals (27%). In the same year, the EU imports from Syria totalled €3.2 billion, of which 86% were energy with the remaining 14% made up almost entirely of textiles and farm products. (F.B. trans fl)