Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2011-02-16-Speech-3-558-000"
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"en.20110216.18.3-558-000"2
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"Mr President, I wish to thank the honourable Members for all the efforts which Parliament in general, and the Committee on International Trade (INTA) in particular, has put into securing prompt assessment – and, I hope, ratification – of the EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement (FTA). This will permit its entry into force.
‘Particular importance will be attached to the effective implementation of commitments on labour and environment of Chapter 13: Trade and Sustainable Development of the FTA. In this connection, the Commission will seek the advice of the Domestic Advisory Group, which will include representatives of business organisations, trade unions and non-governmental organisations. The implementation of Chapter 13 of the FTA shall be duly documented and reported to the European Parliament and the Council.
‘The Commission also agrees on the importance of providing effective protection in the case of sudden surges of imports in sensitive sectors, including small cars. Monitoring of sensitive sectors shall include cars, textiles and consumer electronics. In this connection, the Commission notes that the small-car sector can be considered a relevant market for the purpose of a safeguard investigation.
‘The Commission notes that the designation of outward processing zones in the Korean Peninsula, in accordance with the provisions of Article 12 of the Protocol on Rules of Origin, would require an international agreement between the parties to which the European Parliament would have to give its consent. The Commission will keep Parliament fully informed of the deliberations by the Committee on Outward Processing Zones in the Korean Peninsula.
‘The Commission also notes that if, due to exceptional circumstances, it decides to extend the duration of an investigation pursuant to Article 4(3) of the Korea Safeguard Regulation, it will ensure that such an extended timing does not go beyond the expiry date of any provisional measures introduced pursuant to Article 5.
‘Moreover, the Commission and the European Parliament agree on the importance of close cooperation in monitoring the implementation of the EU-Korea FTA and the Safeguard Regulation.
‘To this end, in case the EP adopts a recommendation to initiate a safeguard investigation, the Commission will carefully examine whether the conditions under the regulation for ex-officio initiation are fulfilled. In case the Commission considers that the conditions are not fulfilled, it will present a report to the INTA Committee including an explanation of all factors relevant to the initiation of such an investigation.
‘Upon request by the INTA Committee, the Commission shall report to the committee on any specific concerns relating to the implementation by Korea of its commitments on non-tariff measures or on Chapter 13 of the FTA.’ That is the end of the quotation.
Finally, let me elaborate on two issues which are of interest to you: the Korean CO
legislation on car emissions, and the supplementary agreement on the draft Korea-US FTA (KORUS), which was finalised in December 2010.
On 24 January 2011, Korea confirmed that certain changes will be introduced to its previous draft CO
legislation, which satisfactorily address a number of concerns expressed by European car makers, while retaining Korea’s ambitious emission reduction objectives. The changes, which the Commission welcomes, will not alter overall emissions, but will provide for fairer burden sharing between Korean and EU car makers.
Rest assured that the EU position on the Korea CO
legislation was closely coordinated at all stages within the Commission and, in particular, with my colleague Connie Hedegaard and DG CLIMA, to avoid undermining Korea’s environmental protection efforts.
This complex task comprised two major processes: finalisation of negotiations on the Korea Safeguard Regulation, implementing the bilateral safeguard clause of the EU-Korea FTA, and the preparation of consent to this treaty.
As for the supplementary agreement to the draft Korea-US FTA reached in December 2010, the Commission has not identified elements therein that could have a negative impact on the EU. I will, however, contact my Korean counterpart to ensure that no competitive disadvantage arises in future for the EU automotive sector insofar as non-harmonised automotive safety standards will not be applied in a more restrictive manner than was the case at the time of the negotiations.
The Commission will be closely monitoring the implementation of this provision. In particular, the Working Group on Motor Vehicles and Parts established by the FTA will examine practical aspects of implementation to ensure that market access problems are addressed in an effective and speedy manner.
To conclude, I wish to emphasise that the EU-Korea FTA will not only provide important benefits for European exporters to the Korean market, but will also be a clear signal of our determination to pursue new opportunities in key Asian economies.
We are also addressing the concerns of some stakeholders by means of an efficient and effective safeguard regulation. As this is subject to the ordinary legislative procedure, both the Council and this House have been able to introduce mechanisms for responding to perceived risks should they materialise.
With this FTA and the Safeguard Regulation we have an excellent package that I hope you will support tomorrow.
I welcome the first-reading agreement between the Council and Parliament on the Safeguard Regulation. The work that was done has not only secured legislation which will provide necessary protection for EU industry, but it has also confirmed the joint commitment of Parliament, the Council and the Commission to efficient law making. This was also the first trade dossier on which Parliament acted as co-legislator under the Treaty of Lisbon. The outcome of its involvement is indeed impressive.
I will not repeat the list of benefits which the EU-Korea FTA is expected to bring to the EU economy: we have thoroughly debated them here in the past, and Mr Sturdy has just summed them up. Let me instead open a brief parenthesis to place the agreement with Korea in the wider perspective of the future of EU trade policy, as sketched out by the Commission in its communication of 9 November 2010, and to recap the basic tenets of our policy line.
First of all, we continue to favour the multilateral channel of the WTO as the first-best way to liberalise trade and lay down the rules to govern global commerce. Despite the setbacks and the deadlock since mid-2008, we continue to push actively for the conclusion of the Doha development round, 10 years now after its inception. It is still well worth clinching a deal, both for the economic gains and in the interests of furthering the WTO. That is why I took the initiative of bringing together in Davos the trade ministers of the world’s seven most important trading countries to discuss, in concrete terms, how we can now proceed and enter the end-game, following the impetus given by the G20 in Seoul. I believe our meeting was a success, and senior officials are now working intensively in an attempt to stage a political breakthrough in the summer.
However, as we said back in November, the bilateral and the multilateral are not enemies. Indeed, it may well be the case that liberalisation fuels liberalisation. We have pursued bilateral trade deals that generate genuine value added compared with what can be achieved through the WTO, and we will keep on doing so because the pace of multilateral progress is unavoidably slow. This has been, and is, our fundamental motivation for pursuing the FTA with Korea.
I will reiterate today the Commission’s commitments to the European Parliament, which it made in relation to the implementation of the Korea Safeguard Regulation and the EU-Korea FTA.
As provided for in the Safeguard Regulation, ‘the Commission will present a yearly report to the European Parliament and Council on the implementation of the EU-Korea FTA and will be ready to discuss with the INTA Committee any issues arising from the implementation of the Agreement.
‘The Commission will closely monitor the implementation by Korea of its commitments on regulatory issues, including in particular the commitments relating to technical regulations in the car sector. The monitoring shall include all aspects of non-tariff barriers and its results shall be documented and reported to the European Parliament and the Council."@en1
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