P6_TA(2005)0360

EU-US Wine Agreement

European Parliament resolution on the EU-US wine agreement

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the bilateral agreement initialled by the European Union and the United States of America on 15 September 2005 on trade in wine,

- having regard to the agricultural chapter of the ongoing negotiations in the World Trade Organization (WTO),

- having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in wine [1],

- having regard to the Framework Agreement on relations between the European Parliament and the Commission of 26 May 2005 [2] stipulating that, in connection with international agreements, including trade agreements, the Commission shall provide early and clear information to Parliament, both during the phase of preparation of the agreements and during the conduct and conclusion of international negotiations, on draft negotiating directives, the adopted negotiating directives, the subsequent conduct of negotiations and the conclusion of the negotiations,

- having regard to Rule 103(4) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas political and economic relations are the bedrock of relations between the European Union and the United States, the scope of which is constantly widening,

B. whereas this first agreement between the European Union and the United States, which has been concluded after two decades of fruitless negotiations, has only minimal scope and does not deal satisfactorily with all the issues relevant to the bilateral trade in wine, which will be the subject of a second round of agreements,

C. whereas the bilateral agreement still has to be ratified, inter alia by the United States Congress,

D. whereas the unrestricted mutual recognition of oenological processes has negative consequences for the European wine industry,

E. whereas the wrongful use of the geographical indications of origin of the European Union by third countries violates intellectual property rights and causes economic harm to the legitimate holders of those indications on account of loss of market share,

F. whereas the legal framework of geographical indications is an essential element of the European Union's policies, recognising as it does the importance of multifunctional agriculture and the social and environmental impact of wine production in mountainous areas and disadvantaged regions,

G. whereas false indications often provide stiff competition for genuine ones and whereas the United States does not respect the protection of wines with a designation of origin, and regards them merely as semi-generic products on its domestic markets,

H. whereas the wine sector in Europe offers a major source of employment and income from small family concerns and small wine enterprises, based on the territorial approach of European wine policies,

I. whereas there has been a departure from the previous line for bilateral agreements and from the idea of an international standard for wine and wine-making put forward by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV),

J. whereas most of the wines which have a designation of origin are produced using costly traditional methods and in accordance with quality standards, and whereas these methods cannot be compared with the industrial processes used in making American wines, which exist alongside the wines bearing European designations of origin,

K. whereas the above-mentioned agreement would set a precedent in terms of the WTO most-favoured-nation clause,

L. whereas special wines are disadvantaged by the definition of the term "wine" on the European wine market,

1. Notes that this bilateral agreement, reached after 20 years of negotiations, is necessary if it helps to secure exports to the United States, which constitutes the principal market for European wine makers, to restore a climate of trust and to ensure the smooth flow of trade;

2. Agrees with the need for a bilateral agreement between the European Union and the United States on trade in wine, and hopes that the next phase of the negotiations will result in a satisfactory outcome for traditional production methods, family-based wine making and the quality of our wines; emphasises that the agreement constitutes merely an initial, though insufficient and inadequate, step towards international recognition of the European Union's protected traditional designations;

3. Criticises the Commission for having agreed to a bilateral deal with the United States without informing Parliament in sufficient time for it to be able to express its views and for the Commission to be able to take those views into account, as provided for in Point 19 of the above-mentioned Framework Agreement;

4. Draws attention to the repercussions that the new agreement could have for the European Union's wine trade policy and its possible consequences for traditional production models, which form the basis of the recognition of the Community's quality policy;

5. Deplores the fact that this agreement will substantially weaken the European Union's position in the agriculture negotiations within the WTO, as it undermines the territorial and quality-oriented approach prevailing in a large part of the wine sector;

6. Calls on the Commission to step up the dialogue with the United States and other partners within the WTO in order to establish a register of internationally recognised geographical indications as a priority in its multilateral agricultural negotiations, to create a joint committee on wine issues and to clarify wine-making practices, certification and the use of traditional names with a view to a second phase of negotiations;

7. Calls on the Commission to speed up the start of the next phase of negotiations, which is provided for in the agreement with the United States, above all with a view to recognition of the seventeen designations of origin listed in Annex II thereto, so that all European designations of origin for wine are duly protected by the United States authorities on their own market as soon as possible;

8. Considers necessary the signing of a final compromise within, at the latest, the two years indicated in the bilateral agreement, with a view to putting a stop, once and for all, to the illegal use in the United States of Community designations protected by Community legislation, given the added value they represent for European wine making;

9. Calls for the establishment of a positive list of oenological practices permitted in trade with third countries, within the framework of the OIV and with the aim of making evaluations prior to future new authorisations;

10. Urges the Commission to promote the negotiation at international level of a binding definition of wine that would halt the development of certain oenological practices, in order to protect the efforts made to maintain quality in the European Union, to avoid Community producers being subjected to unfair competition and to prevent market imbalances;

11. Acknowledges the need for a framework for continued negotiations in the wine sector, in particular in the light of the forthcoming reform of the European Union's common organisation of the market in wine, which is scheduled for 2006;

12. Considers it essential to strengthen Community measures to improve and promote the quality of Community produce as part of the next reform of the common organisation of the market in wine, in order to meet the challenge of increased competition from third countries;

13. Considers that it would be useful to have a legal opinion on the compatibility of this bilateral agreement with Community law;

14. Instructs its President to forward this resolution, together with the names of the signatories, to the Council, the Commission, the Governments of the Member States and the United States Congress.

[1] OJ L 179, 14.7.1999, p. 1. Regulation last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1795/2003 (OJ L 262, 14.10.2003, p. 13.).

[2] Texts Adopted, P6_TA(2005)0194.

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