Besluit 2012/735 - Ondertekening en voorlopige toepassing van de Handelsovereenkomst met Colombia en Peru - Hoofdinhoud

EU Trade Agreement with Colombia, Peru and Ecuador

SUMMARY OF:

Decision 2012/735/EU on the signing of the Trade Agreement between the EU and the EU countries and Colombia and Peru

Trade Agreement between the EU and EU countries and Colombia and Peru

Decision (EU) 2016/2369 on the signing and the provisional application of the Protocol of Accession to the Trade Agreement between the EU and EU countries and Colombia and Peru to take account of the accession of Ecuador

Protocol of Accession to the Trade Agreement between the EU and EU countries and Colombia and Peruto take account of the accession of Ecuador

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE DECISIONS AND THE TRADE AGREEMENT?

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  Decision 2012/735/EU approves, on behalf of the EU, the Trade Agreement (TA) between the EU and EU countries, on the one hand, and Colombia and Peru, on the other.
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  The TA between the EU and Colombia and Peru aims to open up markets on both sides and improve the stability of the trade relationship between the partners. It provides for progressive and reciprocal liberalisation by means of an ambitious and balanced free trade area.
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  Decision (EU) 2016/2369 adopts the Protocol of Accession of Ecuador to the TA, which contains contains all the relevant rules to take account of Ecuador’s accession.
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  The overall objective of the TA is to enhance trade and investment between the 2 regions, integrating productive value chains* and helping local businesses develop in their regional market to compete internationally.

KEY POINTS

Benefits of the trade agreement for partners

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  The main benefit of the TA is to provide businesses with stable and predictable conditions allowing them to trade and invest with confidence. The TA creates significant opportunities for businesses and consumers on both sides.
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  Other expected benefits are:

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    open markets for goods, services, government procurement and investment;
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    savings of €500 million per year on import duties (taxes collected on imports by the customs authorities based on the value of goods or some other criteria such as their weight) at the end of a transition period;
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    better conditions for trade by facilitating procedures (such as rules of origin, sanitary and plant health conditions, and customs procedures), enhancing competition, improving transparency and ensuring the protection of intellectual property rights;
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    a more transparent business environment that makes life easier for firms and for individuals;
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    new cooperation on competitiveness, innovation, production modernisation, trade facilitation and technology transfer.

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  The TA also aims to foster regional integration among the Andean countries. In this context, in July 2014, negotiations were concluded for the accession of Ecuador to the TA, resulting in its accession in January 2017.
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  Bolivia, a member of the Andean Community, also has the possibility to seek accession to the TA.

Human rights and sustainable development

The TA identifies the respect for human rights and the rule of law as essential elements. The TA also includes elements to promote sustainable development through the implementation of international conventions on labour rights and environmental protection. Citizens’ groups are involved in the control of these commitments.

TA implementation

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  In Peru, the TA represents an important opportunity for Peruvian agricultural and fisheries exports (one third of all the country’s exports to the EU). The EU is the largest investor in Peru, mainly in communications, extractive industries, banking and finance,
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  In Colombia, the TA allows the country to diversify its exports to the EU, not only for agriculture and fisheries, but also for Colombian industrial products. The EU is the largest investor in Colombia and is mainly involved in the agricultural, fuel and mining sectors.
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  On the basis of the Third Annual Report on the implementation of the EU –Colombia/Peru Trade Agreement , after 4 years of application, the overall level of EU trade with Peru and Colombia slightly decreased due to the fall in international commodities prices, as mineral products still represent a sizeable part of the export basket of Colombia and Peru to the EU. However, the TA contributed to the diversification of both countries’ exports, notably for agro-industrial products.

FROM WHEN DO THE DECISIONS APPLY?

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  Decision 2012/735/EU has applied since 31 May 2012. The TA with Peru has provisionally applied since 1 March 2013 and the TA with Colombia since 1 August 2013. Full entry into force is pending ratification by the 28 EU countries.
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  Decision 2016/2369/EU has applied since 11 November 2016. The TA with Ecuador has provisionally applied since 1 January 2017. Full entry into force is pending ratification by the 28 EU countries.

BACKGROUND

For more information, see:

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  Andean Community (European Commission)

KEY TERMS

Value chain: a set of business activities that create value for a firm’s customers. At each point in this chain of activities, the product gains some value thanks to an added input or process.

MAIN DOCUMENTS

Council Decision 2012/735/EU of 31 May 2012 on the signing, on behalf of the Union, and provisional application of the Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and Colombia and Peru, of the other part (OJ L 354, 21.12.2012, pp. 1-2)

Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and Colombia and Peru, of the other part (OJ L 354, 21.12.2012, pp. 3-2607)

Notice concerning the provisional application between the European Union and Peru, of the Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and Colombia and Peru, of the other part (OJ L 56, 28.2.2013, p. 1)

Council Decision (EU) 2016/2369 of 11 November 2016 on the signing, on behalf of the Union, and provisional application of the Protocol of Accession to the Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and Colombia and Peru, of the other part, to take account of the accession of Ecuador (OJ L 356, 24.12.2016, pp. 1-2)

Protocol of Accession to the Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and Colombia and Peru, of the other part, to take account of the accession of Ecuador (OJ L 356, 24.12.2016, pp. 3-1456)

Notice concerning the provisional application between the European Union and the Republic of Ecuador of the Protocol of Accession to the Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and Colombia and Peru, of the other part, to take account of the accession of Ecuador (OJ L 358, 29.12.2016, p. 1).

RELATED DOCUMENTS

Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council – Third annual report of the EU –Colombia/Peru Trade Agreement (COM (2017) 585 final, 10.10.2017)

Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council – Second annual report on the implementation of the EU–Colombia/Peru Trade Agreement (COM (2016) 58 final 10.2.2016).

Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council — Annual report on the implementation of the EU–Colombia/Peru Trade Agreement (COM(2014) 718 final, 4.12.2014).

last update 20.11.2017

Deze samenvatting is overgenomen van EUR-Lex.