Trade Ministers On EPA Process
PRESS STATEMENT
16th November 2006
97/06
PICS CALL FOR POLITICAL INTERVENTION IN EPA NEGOTIATIONS
Trade Ministers from Pacific ACP (PACP) countries have agreed on the need to intensify political interventions in the negotiating process of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union (EU) as the deadline for the conclusion of negotiations approaches.
The region must also insist on the appropriate level of interaction between the European Commission (EC) and PACP Officials.
The decisions were among several made during a one-day meeting of the PACP Trade Ministers in Port Vila, Vanuatu today. The Trade Ministers met after a Joint Meeting with the PACP Fisheries Ministers earlier this week during which they endorsed in principle the legal text of a draft Multilateral Fisheries Partnership Agreement to be negotiated with the European Union as part of an Economic Partnership Agreement with EU.
"EPA negotiations have progressed slowly with significant differences of interests between the EU and the ACP on issues such as development cooperation, EPA adjustment and on Services. Several non-papers were exchanged with the European Commission (EC) but to date the Pacific ACP States have not received satisfactory responses from the EC on the issues of interest to PACPS," Hon. James Bule, Chairman of the meeting and Vanuatu's Minister of Trade, Commerce, Industries and Tourism said
"This inadequate response from the EC can only be construed as reluctance on their part in seriously addressing the issues by the PACPS.
"But we must remain optimistic and maintain PACP solidarity and continue to drive home our positions. Political focus was needed on the issues that were of interest to the PACPS," Mr Bule said.
The Trade Ministers also agreed:
" to re-iterate the region's position for a rule of origin based on a change in tariff sub-heading (CTSH) at the six-digit level;
" to inform the ACP Secretariat that while the PACP region will seek to cooperate and support other ACP regions in their negotiations on rules of origin to the greatest extent
possible, for the region to benefit from a trade in goods agreement, the CTSH rule of origin approach must be adopted in the Pacific EPA;
" that the draft EPA legal text and non-papers on rules of origin and services already given to the EC for informal discussion as non-papers now be elaborated and tabled formally as negotiating documents with the EU;
" on the importance of quantifying costs for implementing specific national projects to advance PACP requests for additional funds for EPA adjustment;
" on the need to press the EC for the establishment of an adjustment facility;
" to adopt the proposal to establish a Pacific Centre for SME investment finance and that this be raised in relevant regional and bilateral meetings over the next few months, and to raise the proposal with the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) in the context of its plan to open a Pacific regional office in 2007;
" to use a study on seafarers in Kiribati and Tuvalu to support the PACP EPA negotiations and to use the report to assess possible development cooperation amongst PACPS;
" to look at options for appointing a Chief Trade Negotiator for Forum Island Countries (FICs) to negotiate free trade agreements with the Pacific Islands trade partners;
" to request the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat to progress the recommendations in a study on Forum Island Countries trade with China and Japan; and
" to request the Forum Representative to the World Trade Organization(WTO) in Geneva to work closely with other WTO members to ensure that fisheries access fess were not considered to be subsidies.
Trade Ministers and representatives of the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu attended the meeting.
ENDS.
16th November 2006
97/06
PICS CALL FOR POLITICAL INTERVENTION IN EPA NEGOTIATIONS
Trade Ministers from Pacific ACP (PACP) countries have agreed on the need to intensify political interventions in the negotiating process of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union (EU) as the deadline for the conclusion of negotiations approaches.
The region must also insist on the appropriate level of interaction between the European Commission (EC) and PACP Officials.
The decisions were among several made during a one-day meeting of the PACP Trade Ministers in Port Vila, Vanuatu today. The Trade Ministers met after a Joint Meeting with the PACP Fisheries Ministers earlier this week during which they endorsed in principle the legal text of a draft Multilateral Fisheries Partnership Agreement to be negotiated with the European Union as part of an Economic Partnership Agreement with EU.
"EPA negotiations have progressed slowly with significant differences of interests between the EU and the ACP on issues such as development cooperation, EPA adjustment and on Services. Several non-papers were exchanged with the European Commission (EC) but to date the Pacific ACP States have not received satisfactory responses from the EC on the issues of interest to PACPS," Hon. James Bule, Chairman of the meeting and Vanuatu's Minister of Trade, Commerce, Industries and Tourism said
"This inadequate response from the EC can only be construed as reluctance on their part in seriously addressing the issues by the PACPS.
"But we must remain optimistic and maintain PACP solidarity and continue to drive home our positions. Political focus was needed on the issues that were of interest to the PACPS," Mr Bule said.
The Trade Ministers also agreed:
" to re-iterate the region's position for a rule of origin based on a change in tariff sub-heading (CTSH) at the six-digit level;
" to inform the ACP Secretariat that while the PACP region will seek to cooperate and support other ACP regions in their negotiations on rules of origin to the greatest extent
possible, for the region to benefit from a trade in goods agreement, the CTSH rule of origin approach must be adopted in the Pacific EPA;
" that the draft EPA legal text and non-papers on rules of origin and services already given to the EC for informal discussion as non-papers now be elaborated and tabled formally as negotiating documents with the EU;
" on the importance of quantifying costs for implementing specific national projects to advance PACP requests for additional funds for EPA adjustment;
" on the need to press the EC for the establishment of an adjustment facility;
" to adopt the proposal to establish a Pacific Centre for SME investment finance and that this be raised in relevant regional and bilateral meetings over the next few months, and to raise the proposal with the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) in the context of its plan to open a Pacific regional office in 2007;
" to use a study on seafarers in Kiribati and Tuvalu to support the PACP EPA negotiations and to use the report to assess possible development cooperation amongst PACPS;
" to look at options for appointing a Chief Trade Negotiator for Forum Island Countries (FICs) to negotiate free trade agreements with the Pacific Islands trade partners;
" to request the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat to progress the recommendations in a study on Forum Island Countries trade with China and Japan; and
" to request the Forum Representative to the World Trade Organization(WTO) in Geneva to work closely with other WTO members to ensure that fisheries access fess were not considered to be subsidies.
Trade Ministers and representatives of the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu attended the meeting.
ENDS.
