July 5, 2013

 

EU urges Canada to conclude free trade talks

 

 

The EU is once again pressuring Canada to conclude the long-running free trade talks, as negotiators poised to meet next week in Ottawa.

 

Matthias Brinkmann, the EU ambassador to Canada, said Wednesday (Jul 3) he's hopeful an agreement can be finalised, possibly before the summer's end. "We were ready already in February to conclude this negotiation. It seems that more time is needed."

 

Four months ago, hopes were high that the protracted negotiations might be coming to a close when trade and agriculture ministers met in Ottawa. However, the long-awaited agreement has so far failed to materialise.

 

Brinkmann made clear that the window for finalising the deal is narrowing, noting that much of Europe shuts down for business in August.

 

Asked if there are any planned talks in the coming weeks, he said: "there is no meeting fixed yet... we're on standby." However, a spokesman for International Trade Minister Ed Fast said negotiators planned to meet in Ottawa next week, but did not provide further details.

 

"Canada has made robust offers in good faith that address the EU's key interests," spokesman Rudy Husny said. "Canadians expect to be provided the same by the EU. We continue to make this clear to our EU counterparts."

 

Brinkmann also confirmed that one significant sticking point is Canada's demand for Europe to open its market to beef exports. "We have a generous offer, which I think meets the demands by the sector concerned here in Canada," he said.

 

John Masswohl, of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association, said the European offer simply is not enough to compensate Canadian beef farmers for the extra costs they will face to convert production to hormone and antibiotic-free beef as called for by the EU. He also declined to discuss specific numbers.

 

"We are close, and it's going to take some tough political decisions on both sides," said Masswohl, who was recently in Brussels for the negotiations.

 

With Europe and the US about to embark on their own free trade talks, some analysts have predicted that the on-going negotiations with Canada will be shuffled to the back burner.

 

Brinkmann hinted that was a factor that Canada might want to take into consideration. In recent months, the EU has pushed Canada to bring the negotiations to a conclusion.

 

In February, Karel De Gucht, the EU's trade commissioner, told a committee of the European Parliament that Canada must change its positions for a deal to be struck, but gave no details.

 

Last month, EU trade spokesman John Clancy issued a statement that publicly criticised Canada for holding up the deal. The Canadian government reiterated its position Wednesday that it will not sign a deal that is not in the country's interest.