Question 9995 — treaties and conventions

Summary

The European Union is currently negotiating a free trade agreement with the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay). The last round of negotiations, which took place from September 10 to 14, 2018, could not be conclusive, and the negotiation continues. The stakes are high for certain French agricultural sectors given the competitiveness of Mercosur sectors. Fully aware of these sensitivities, and in line with the objectives of the States General of Food, the Government is mobilized to ensure the defense of French interests and thus guarantee the preservation of the economic dynamism of the territories. France, supported by other Member States, thus considers that the conclusion of the EU-Mercosur agreement is dependent on the balance between market opening and the protection of sensitive agricultural sectors in the trading, in particular, beef, ethanol, sugar and poultry. Consistent with the actions decided within the framework of the action plan on the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), the Government further argues that tariff concessions on sensitive products must fall within the limits of an “overall envelope”, making it possible to define what is sustainable for the sectors in question. view of the market, on the scale of all current or future negotiations (Australia, New Zealand, Chile, etc.). It is also working to ensure that these tariff concessions are directly linked to measures to restore fair conditions of competition between French producers and those from Mercosur countries (safeguard mechanism and conditions linked to production methods). Concerning the health aspect and phyto-sanitary, audits were carried out in Brazil by the services of the European Commission in 2017 and 2018 to assess the reliability of the certification of exports to the European Union. The Government will be particularly vigilant to ensure the reliability of the Mercosur health system is guaranteed before the conclusion of the agreement, consistent with the conclusions of these audits. In any case, all of the Meat imports from Mercosur will have to comply with European Union health standards. In this regard, we must welcome the adoption, on June 5, 2018 in Brussels, of a regulation relating to veterinary medicinal products which ratifies the ban on the importation of all types of meat from animals for which antibiotics have been used as growth promoters. This contributes to the defense of the model French food, in accordance with the expectations of citizens. There remains work to be done between now and the conclusion of this negotiation; Mercosur will have to demonstrate that it can offer the European Union an agreement that protects its sensitivities and is synonymous with progress for offensive agricultural sectors. The Government will be attentive until the conclusion to preserve the interests of French agricultural sectors.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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