In a letter to the lower house of the Dutch Parliament, the coalition government led by Mark Rutte has indicated it will be taking the time necessary to broker a deal with its opposition so as to be able to enact the ratification of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. The move …
EU FTAs & bilateral ties
Analysis – After CETA: what next for the deal and for EU trade policy?
The dramatic CETA episode has clearly weakened the Commission’s hand in trade policy, and dented the EU’s reputation as a reliable partner, Iana Dreyer finds. So the EU has managed to obtain unanimous backing by its 28 member states of the CETA agreement with Canada after all. The flagship …
Dutch government wrangling with opposition over support for Ukraine Association deal
Today, the Dutch government decided to postpone a decision on whether to take the final steps to enact the EU Ukraine Association Agreement. It has set a 1 November deadline for a final decision and is ready to revoke its support for the deal should the Parliament reject supporting a compromise …
Commission plans to step up promotion of EU Vietnam FTA – amidst CETA row
The Vietnamese government is watching the protracted CETA ratification process in the EU with perplexity and anxiety as it asks itself what this could mean for its own recently concluded deal with the EU. The EU Commission shares these worries. In 2015, Vietnam concluded a wide-reaching free trade agreement with …
Exclusive: Bogota hopes EU WTO case will be dropped now that new liquor law on track
Metals at heart of fresh EU dispute with China in WTO
Winning a case in the WTO against Chinese restrictions on rare earths back in 2014 was not enough for both the EU and the United States. Early October, Washington launched a new case against continued export restrictions by China on various minerals and metals. This week, the Brussels followed into …
Belgian compromise: Wallonia can still veto CETA
The Belgian media RTBF released the final text of the compromise hammered out between Wallonia, other regional entities in Belgium, and the Belgian federal government, on CETA today after three days of marathon talks in the small country that hosts the EU institutions. The deal paves the way for Belgian signature …
CETA: Wallonia obtains right to pull out, safeguard clauses
The government of Wallonia and the federal government of Belgium have reached an agreement on Wednesday (26 October 2016) afternoon that is expected to pave the way for a signature of CETA between the EU and Canada. But the final details of the deal are yet to be hammered out …
Last-ditch attempts to salvage Ukraine Association deal in Netherlands
The EU Ukraine Association Agreement, signed in 2014, and already partially in force, is at risk. The Dutch parliament is scrambling for a way to get the deal ratified despite a negative vote during a referendum in April 2016, and following a rebuff by the Council to Dutch requests for a common …
Sri Lanka tries to narrow down EU demands in GSP Plus bid
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Wickremesinghe and Ambassador Rodney Perera in Brussels on 20 October 2016. Credit: Iana Dreyer It should be simple and straightforward: if Sri Lanka applies the 27 human rights, labour and environmental conventions listed by the EU’s regulation, the country should be able to benefit from …
