Brussels, 10/07/2009 (Agence Europe) - Despite some concern on the part of France and Ireland, the Council is expected, on Monday 13 July, to approve without debate the European Commission's proposal to open a new preferential quota for Community imports of beef, in order to settle the longstanding transatlantic dispute over beef with hormones (EUROPE 9903). During the meeting of the Committee 133 on 3 July, member states' trade experts gave their unanimous backing to the Commission's project aimed at opening an additional quota on 1 August for 20,000 tonnes of top quality, fresh, refrigerated or deep-frozen beef without hormones, in exchange for which the United States pledges to make downward revision of sanctions against a number of farm products. US sanctions were taken as a retaliatory measure to the EU ban on imports of hormoned beef. During the meeting of the Special Agriculture Committee (SAC) three days later, Germany, Poland and the United Kingdom supported a proposal considered balanced. France, for its part, considered that the new tariff quota was a major concession that cannot be extended to other third countries. Ireland also stressed that any request for import quotas from another country, except Canada, should be rejected. In answer to France's questions, the Commission said discussions with Canada had still not been concluded. It also gave its assurance that, in the event of part withdrawal, the quota would be withdrawn, and that it was not a matter of extending it sunder pressure from other third countries and that the latter could benefit from the quantity opened for the United States. Finally, it explained that the Agriculture Council will only vote on the import quota and not on the memorandum of understanding concluded with Washington. (E.H./transl.jl)