European Parliament recommendation of 15 March 2007 to the Council on the negotiating mandate for an association agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the countries of Central America, of the other part (2006/2222(INI))
Date: 2007-03-15
Institutions: Committee on Foreign Affairs, European Parliament
Subjects: Central America, European Union, association agreement (EU), cooperation policy, negotiation of an agreement (EU), political cooperation, trade relations

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16.
Points out that, even though general consultation procedures exist, independent external bodies and
organisations which are specifically concerned with fundamental rights issues must be more extensively
involved; to that end, calls on the Commission to devise a specific arrangement for enabling such bodies
and organisations to be consulted during the procedure for drafting legislative proposals which have an
impact on fundamental rights;

17.
Calls on the Council to strengthen the systematic monitoring of fundamental rights also in areas
covered by intergovernmental cooperation, to publish the results and likewise to secure the support of the
Fundamental Rights Agency;

18.
Reaffirms that Parliament and other European Union institutions may benefit, within the framework
of the legislative procedure, as appropriate and on a voluntary basis, from the expertise on fundamental
rights acquired by the Fundamental Rights Agency, as well as in the areas of police and judicial cooperation;

19.
Neither the Treaties nor Regulation (EC) No 168/2007 preclude the possibility of Parliament seeking
the assistance of the Fundamental Rights Agency when implementing Article 7 of the TEU; expects that the
Commission and the Fundamental Rights Agency will provide in the multi-annual framework, as well as in
the annual work programme, for the necessary financial and human resources, so that the Fundamental
Rights Agency can respond adequately to requests from Parliament when exercising its powers according
to Article 7 of the TEU;

Stresses the importance of establishing suitable means of communicating with and informing the
20.
general public and the EU institutions concerning the internal monitoring of the compliance with funda-
mental rights, including by drawing up periodic reports on the subject;

Requests Member State parliaments, in particular in the fields of police and judicial cooperation and
21.
the common foreign and security policy, to verify the compatibility of all decisions and measures with the
Charter of Fundamental Rights, so that the indivisibility of fundamental rights is preserved and the systema-
tic and thorough monitoring of fundamental rights in all the Union's policies can be ensured;

22.
Calls on the Council and the Commission, pursuant to Article 4 of the TEU and Articles 200 and
212 of the EC Treaty, to submit a yearly report on the fundamental rights policy of the Union to Parliament
and the national parliaments, and to engage in a systematic, open and permanent dialogue on the safe-
guarding of fundamental rights in the Union;

Calls on the Commission and the Council to report to Parliament on the follow-up given to the

23.
reports by the network of national experts;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission, and the govern-

24.
ments and parliaments of the Member States and of the candidate countries.

P6_TA(2007)0079

Negotiation of an EU-Central America Association Agreement

European Parliament recommendation of 15 March 2007 to the Council on the negotiating mandate
for an association agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part,
and the countries of Central America, of the other part (2006/2222(INI))

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the proposal for a recommendation to the Council by Willy Meyer Pleite on behalf of
the GUE/NGL Group, on the guidelines for the negotiation of an Association Agreement between the
European Union and Central America (B6-0417/2006),

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— having regard to paragraph 31 of the Vienna Declaration, which notes the decision taken by the Euro-
pean Union and Central America at the Fourth European Union-Latin America and Caribbean Summit,
held in Vienna on 12 May 2006, to open negotiations on an Association Agreement, which includes
political dialogue, cooperation programmes and a trade agreement,

— having regard to Title V of the Treaty on European Union,

— having regard to its resolution of 15 November 2001 on a global partnership and a common strategy

for relations between the European Union and Latin America (1),

— having regard to its resolution of 27 April 2006 on a stronger partnership between the European

Union and Latin America (2),

— having regard to Rule 114(3) and Rule 83(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

— having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the opinions of the Committee on

Development and the Committee on International Trade (A6-0026/2007),

A. whereas respect for democracy, the rule of law and full enjoyment of human rights by all individuals,
along with full respect for the civil and political rights of the citizens of both regions, are the basic
conditions for the development of the association between the parties, as was decided in Vienna,

B.

C.

whereas a guarantee of full enjoyment of fundamental rights for all citizens, particularly those who are
disadvantaged, such as those belonging to indigenous peoples, and their more active social and politi-
cal participation, are fundamental elements of the agreement,

whereas the guidelines for negotiation of the future agreement on economic association, political
consensus and cooperation must accord with the parties' wish, as expressed in paragraph 31 of the
Vienna Declaration, to conclude a comprehensive association agreement, in other words, one which
restates the firm belief that the relationship with Central America, implies a political and economic
partnership with the region and its various countries which takes into account the asymmetry and
inequalities between the two regions and amongst the various Central American countries, and which
therefore includes key provisions on development cooperation and social cohesion and will strive to
bring about free trade,

D. whereas the creation of the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly (EuroLat) has been a decisive
step in reinforcing the democratic legitimacy and political dimension of relations between the EU and
Latin America, and particularly between the EU and Central America, and whereas that Assembly will
be a permanent forum for political dialogue between the two regions,

E.

1.

(a)

(b)

whereas the guidelines for negotiation of the future agreement must take account of the economic,
political and social circumstances which exist in most Central American countries, and the differences
in development between the two regions, as well as the nature of economic relations in Central
America: regional trade concentrated on a small number of countries, a high level of dependence on
exports of traditional products and low levels of foreign direct investment by the EU in the region, and
so on,

Addresses the following recommendations to the Council:

expressly include in the negotiating mandate the legal basis on which the new association agreement is
to be negotiated; that basis should be Article 310 of the EC Treaty in conjunction with the first
sentence of the first subparagraph of Article 300(2) and the second subparagraph of Article 300(3);

specify in the negotiating mandate that the objective of the Association Agreement between the EU
and Central America includes the gradual liberalisation of trade in conditions of fairness and mutual
benefit based on complementarity and solidarity, and political dialogue and cooperation, as well as
consolidating democracy and the rule of law and full respect for human, civil and political rights,
social cohesion, sustainable human development, and economic and social rights, not forgetting the
cultural and environmental aspects of such rights;

(1) OJ C 140 E, 13.6.2002, p. 569.
(2) OJ C 296 E, 6.12.2006, p. 123.

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(c)

(d)

(e)

(f)

(g)

(h)

(i)

(j)

(k)

provide in the negotiating guidelines for the mechanisms required to ensure that the terms of the
future agreement are in perfect accordance with the EU Treaty mandate, pursuant to which the con-
tribution to sustainable human development, as defined in the 1996 United Nations Development
Programme, promotion of international cooperation, the development and consolidation of democ-
racy, and respect for human rights are basic objectives of the Union;

identify in the negotiating guidelines, taking account of the vulnerability that is characteristic of Cen-
tral American socio-economic, environmental and democratic development, the central
issues on
which the agenda and political dialogue will focus, including the updating of aims and objectives in
such issues as democratic governance, combating terrorism, the maintenance of peace and security
and conflict management; include further new issues such as the reduction of poverty, support for
social cohesion, migration and human exchanges, the fight against crime and especially violent crime
with transnational connections (trafficking in drugs, arms and people, and the activities of organised
gangs such as ‘las Maras’) and so on; and propose specific action for adopting common positions in
international fora and at the United Nations in such a way as to achieve a genuine international
political consensus between the two regions;

provide for the appointment of members of the European Union — Central America Joint Parliament-
ary Committee, which will be set up under the new association agreement, from among Members of
the European Parliament and the Central American Parliament, from the national parliaments not yet
belonging to any regional chamber and from EuroLat, as a practical expression of support for the
regional integration process in Central America and for the EU-LAC Bi-regional Strategic Partnership;

include specific references in the negotiating guidelines to the appropriate involvement of civil society
in the new political dialogue, by proposing the holding of periodic conferences with representatives of
civil society in both the EU and Central America, granting those representatives observer status at
interministerial meetings, and taking action to facilitate the representatives' active involvement in the
relevant sectoral forums, committees and subcommittees at all stages in the discussion and negotiation
of, and follow-up to, the process;

also allocate a key role to supporting the fight against impunity and corruption, and provide actions
and programmes to strengthen democratic institutions in Central America;

provide in the negotiating guidelines for additional support from the EU for Central American integra-
tion and the reform and consolidation of its legislative framework and its institutions — including the
General Secretariat, Central American Parliament and Central American Court of Justice —, with the
aim of improving their effectiveness, representativeness and legitimacy, in particular as regards the
customs union, the free movement of persons, common policies, harmonising legislation and creating
their own funding mechanism;

include the aims of supporting regional integration — in particular, the integration of physical, trans-
port, communications and energy infrastructures — among the aims of the forthcoming mandate for
the European Investment Bank's operations in Latin America, so that the Bank's activity effectively
complements the new agreement;

work with the countries of Central America to support their efforts to counter the illegal production
and trade in drugs; part of those activities should involve extending aid programmes to farmers for
introducing alternative crops, the marketing of which the EU could help effectively to ensure;

ensure the inclusion and application of the democracy clause in the guidelines for the Association
Agreement and establish mechanisms to safeguard the continuity of the system of employment and
environmental incentives under the scheme of generalised preferences (GSP) (1), including the GSP Plus
scheme, by means of clauses of a social or environmental nature; make express reference to the
practical mechanisms that will enable them to be applied, and provide in particular for an annual
report to Parliament on the follow-up carried out by the Commission in this area;

(l)

take into account the fact that the GSP, including GSP Plus, is an autonomous EU regime benefiting
the Central American countries on the basis of their levels of development;

(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 980/2005 of 27 June 2005 applying a scheme of generalised tariff preferences

(OJ L 169, 30.6.2005, p. 1).

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(m)

take account, with regard to the provisions on development cooperation in the new agreement, of the
particular features of the Central American region and achievement of the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) in the region, and start from the premise that the training of human resources and
cultural and educational exchange are a priority for overcoming poverty in the region, so as to give
special attention to education, research, science and technology and culture, also promoting an
increase in exchanges in these areas;

(n)

(o)

(p)

(q)

(r)

(s)

(t)

(u)

(v)

(w)

point out that the Association Agreement between the EU and Central America should be based on
achieving the MDGs and also on the fight to eradicate poverty and reduce inequalities, which the EU
has set as priorities for cooperation;

ensure that cooperation and the economic instruments available to the EU will also be used to pro-
mote and preserve the environment in the Central American region;

pay particular attention to tourism projects in Central America with a view to ensuring that they are
developed sustainably, given that tourism provides an incentive for economic growth;

also promote three-way and bi-regional cooperation — especially with the Caribbean — and the
policy of South-South cooperation, once the association agreement has entered into force;

promote a suitable support framework for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their crea-
tion as an essential element for economic development, job creation and social well-being; consider
what measures could be implemented to combat unemployment in the field of SMEs (including fiscal
measures) and develop support programmes for those enterprises in the area of research;

support small-scale producers and SMEs in general, and urges that investment be made in small
businesses since the opening-up of the European markets will essentially benefit larger-scale producers
who are able to satisfy European sanitary and phytosanitary standards;

conclude a comprehensive and balanced Association Agreement based on three pillars: a political and
institutional chapter reinforcing democratic dialogue and political cooperation, a cooperation chapter
promoting sustainable economic and social development, and a trade chapter eventually establishing
an advanced FTA with a broad agenda including, in addition to the gradual and reciprocal liberalisa-
tion of trade in goods and services, investment, public procurement, the protection of intellectual
property rights, cooperation regarding competition and trade defence instruments, trade facilitation
and an effective dispute settlement mechanism;

provide in the negotiating guidelines for gradual and reciprocal trade liberalisation, (under terms and
conditions characterised by justice and mutual benefit based on complementarity and solidarity) pro-
gressive access to European markets for Central American products under competitive terms and con-
ditions, so as to prevent the agreement from aggravating existing asymmetries; accordingly, provide for
special, variable and flexible treatment as regards the timetable that is established, depending on the
commitments and improvements in the competitiveness achieved by the Central American countries,
including EU support measures to promote changes in the production sector and the competitiveness
of the Central American economies, such as technology transfer, the inclusion of requirements for
home-country content in rules on origin, and the drawing-up of cooperation and technical assistance
programmes, while at the same time promoting a stable legal environment and clear ground rules to
guarantee the security of the parties' investments and economic and trade relations;

regard a Euro-Latin America Interregional Comprehensive Partnership Area as a priority strategic
objective for the EU's external relations in an international context characterised by increased interde-
pendence, economic growth and the emergence of new economic powers;

join Parliament in asking the Commission to launch, as a matter of urgency, a trade sustainability
impact assessment, which should be a preliminary step in the negotiation of a trade agreement, and
to request that the Commission inform Parliament about initiatives taken in this regard;

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(x)

(y)

(z)

(aa)

(ab)

in particular, do not include any express or tacit subordination making conclusion of the future EU-
Central America agreement conditional on prior completion of the round of negotiations at the World
Trade Organization (WTO), without prejudice to incorporating in the agreement in due course the
results of the Doha working programme that are compatible with the ultimate aim of the EU-Central
America Association, all this being a demonstration of tangible and decisive support for the regional
integration process in Central America;

commit to the establishment of a Euro-Latin America Interregional Comprehensive Partnership Area in
full compliance with the new WTO transparency mechanism and the rights and obligations arising
out of the WTO, particularly Article XXIV of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and Article
V of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), thus contributing to the strengthening of the
multilateral trading system;

negotiate a single and indivisible trade agreement which goes beyond the negotiating parties' present
and future WTO obligations and establishes over a transition period compatible with WTO require-
ments a Euro-Latin America Interregional Comprehensive Partnership Area and which, without exclud-
ing any sector, takes account, in the least restrictive fashion possible, of the development dimension
and the specific sensitivity of certain products;

take into account, as a very important step for the successful development of the negotiations, that
Central America has endeavoured to fulfil its commitment, confirmed at the above-mentioned Vienna
Summit, to implement as planned the decisions taken by the Heads of State and Government of
Panama, Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic
meeting in Panama on 9 March 2006, which aim at achieving an effective customs union, as well as
to seek ratification of the Central American Treaty on Investment and Trade in Services and to develop
a jurisdictional mechanism that could secure enforcement of regional economic legislation throughout
the region;

take carefully into account the fact that the joint EU-Central American assessment of Central America's
economic integration highlights a number of important practical conclusions to be drawn at the
operational level (as regards the institutional framework, economic integration, the customs union,
technical barriers to trade, the rules on sanitary and phytosanitary measures, regional liberalisation of
services and investment, public procurement, intellectual property rights and the geographic informa-
tion system, competition, and the trade defence instrument) so as to strengthen, develop, and com-
plete the Central American customs union and the common internal market, which are essential in
order to negotiate and establish a genuine FTA encompassing the two regions;

(ac)

take into account the fact that consolidating and strengthening the Central American common market,
first and foremost by completing the customs union and developing the common market, among
other things by establishing an external trade policy and genuinely free movement of
imported
goods, will serve to lower the barriers for economic operators and boost trade and investment flows
between the two regions;

(ad) offer meaningful new opportunities for market access in agriculture, which is crucial for Central
America's development, independently of progress made in other areas, such as access to the market
in non-agricultural products (NAMA) and in services, as achieved in relation to agricultural
issues
other than market access;

(ae)

ensure a far-reaching and balanced outcome to the NAMA negotiations so as to allow for new and real
opportunities for market access across the whole trade spectrum, subject to the appropriate degree of
flexibility regarding the timetable for the elimination of tariffs by Central America and also to enable
fisheries-related activities to continue and expand;

(af)

take carefully into account the fact that fishing activity is an important and sensitive matter both for
the EU and for Central America, given its contribution to economic development and job creation in
the region, and the need to maintain fish stocks at sustainable levels through responsible fishing;

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(ag)

take into account the importance of guaranteeing universal access to essential services and of national
rights to regulate, and thus of proceeding cautiously in the negotiations on the liberalisation of trade
in services, in conformity with Article V of GATS, in order to ensure real improvements regarding the
liberalisation commitments thus far agreed and applied and the need for a clear and predictable reg-
ulatory framework; abstain from making offers or accepting requests in the areas of public health and
education;

(ah)

take into account the ever-increasing potential of the tourism sector for investment and economic
development in the Central American countries, and the importance of promoting tourism between
the two regions;

(ai)

(aj)

include as a general provision the need for both the EU and Central America to seek, as a matter of
principle, the eventual convergence of the various agreements in force or under negotiation between
the two regions;

take into account the fact that the dispute settlement procedures provided for in comparable existing
agreements concluded by the Community with third countries are not effectively utilised; therefore
request the Commission to put forward new proposals with a view to devising a more effective dispute
settlement instrument to issue rulings on disputes arising in any of the individual sectors to be covered
by the FTA;

(ak) ensure that the Commission provides Parliament with exhaustive (and if necessary confidential) infor-

mation on the draft negotiating guidelines as well as on the negotiating guidelines finally adopted;

2.
Instructs its President to forward this recommendation to the Council and, for information, to the
Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States and the countries of Central
America.

P6_TA(2007)0080

Negotiation of an EU-Andean Community Association Agreement

European Parliament recommendation of 15 March 2007 to the Council on the negotiating mandate
for an association agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part,
and the Andean Community and its member countries, of the other part (2006/2221(INI))

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the proposal for a recommendation to the Council by Luis Yáñez-Barnuevo on behalf
of the PSE Group on the negotiating guidelines for an association agreement between the European
Union and its Member States of the one part, and the Andean Community and its member countries,
of the other part (B6-0374/2006),

— having regard to Paragraph 31 of the Vienna Declaration, which notes the decision taken by the Euro-
pean Union and the Andean Community (CAN) at the Fourth European Union — Latin America and
Caribbean Summit, held in Vienna on 12 May 2006, to initiate in 2006 a process leading to the
negotiation of an association agreement, including a political dialogue, cooperation programmes and a
trade agreement,

— having regard to Title V of the Treaty on European Union,

— having regard to its resolution of 15 November 2001 on a global partnership and a common strategy

for relations between the European Union and Latin America (1),

(1) OJ C 140 E, 13.6.2002, p. 569.