(EU) and the Common Market of the South (MERCOSUR)? - FDCL

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24 tual contradictions between the potential impact of their free trade agreements with third parties on sustainable development and their own attitudes towards development policy on the one hand and the effects of their foreign trade policy on the other hand. Due to pressures from civil society the EU-Commission financed the so-called Sustainable Impact Assessments, SIA, which focus on the impact of the EU foreign trade policy: “The aim of the SIA, which is very much at the cutting-edge of the field of impact assessment, is to assess the impact that the results of trade negotiations will have on sustainability.” 42 In this way the EU, by means of the DG Trade, financed its SIA-series which included a “Methodological Study” and a “Sustainability Impact Assessment of Proposed WTO Multilateral Trade Negotiations,” both prepared by the University of Manchester, a “Sectoral SIA on Food Crops Sector” prepared by the Stockholm Environment Institute, a “SIA on EU - A.C.P trade negotiations” as well as “SIA on EU - GCC trade negotiations”, both prepared by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, and a “SIA on EU - MERCOSUR / Chile trade negotiations” by Planistat Luxembourg. 43 The SIA of Planistat Luxembourg was meant to investigate the potential impact and dangers of the free trade agreements between the EU and Chile as well the EU and MERCOSUR, in two steps: First by means of a methodological assessment and then through an actual impact study. The EU-Chile agreement was investigated first and the study was concluded with a Final Report in October 2002. The SIA on the EU-MERCOSUR agreement, however, did not get any further than the draft inception report of February 2003; the revised version should have been published in June 2003. At the same time the solemn intention of this SIA on EU-Chile/MERCOSUR was in the beginning not less than: “to provide a better basis than has existed to date for EC institutions to shape any sustainability-related aspects of the EC approach to these negotiations, to provide an SIA-based assessment of negotiation underway and a review of the results of negotiations when the time comes to present them for formal adoption.” 44 And the EU foreign trade commissioner, Pascal Lamy, had stated in a speech on February 6, 2003 in Brussels, at a seminary on new approaches to assess the impact of free trade agreements: 42 http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/global/sia/index_en.htm. 43 http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/global/sia/past.htm and http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/global/ sia/underway.htm. 44 http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/global/sia/underway.htm.
“If trade is to be a tool for development, we need to ensure that it is compatible with sensitive management of the environment and social development. SIAs are an essential means to help us achieve these challenges.” 45 Already in April 2002 a study prepared by order of the WWF on the Sustainable Impact Assessment EU/MERCOSUR judged that: “In accordance with its announced policy, the Commission is preparing to undertake a sustainability assessment of the EU/MERCOSUR negotiations. That is a welcome development and one that may help to identify some of the missing elements of the current agenda. In principle, however, a sustainability assessment is not designed to rectify a negotiating agenda that is inadequate, in particular when its shortcoming concern primarily political issues and missed opportunities. It is difficult to see what a sustainability assessment can contribute to negotiations that have already been under way for three years under an agenda that takes little or no account of the issues surrounding sustainability.” 46 During the course of 2003 the Eurostat-scandal became publicly known, with Planistat Luxembourg at its center: Planistat had created a bank account for presumed irregular reserves (the investigations of the public prosecutor are still running) under the self-explanatory name “Euro-Diff”, so that the EU-Commission saw itself obligated to cancel all contracts with Planistat, which included the SIA on EU-Chile/ MERCOSUR. 47 One of the first consequences of this was that the Planistat-website (http://www.planistat.com) published a memorandum: “Suite à une décision de la Commission Européenne, ce site n’est plus mis à jour depuis le 10 Juillet 2003. Following a decision of the European Commission, this website was not updated since the 10th of July 2003. De acuerdo a una decisión de la Comisión Europea, esta página web no ha sido actualizada desde el 10 de julio de 2003”, before the website was completely removed from the web, - and the staff was 45 http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/sia/pr060203_en.htm. 46 Konrad von Moltke (International Institute for Sustainable Development): European Union / MERCOSUR Negotiations. The Environment and Sustainable Development Dimension, edited by: WWF European Policy Office, Belgien & WWF Brazil, April 2002, p. 24. 47 The Guardian reported: “The commission froze all contracts with Planistat two weeks ago as part of a crackdown on “widespread irregularities” in Eurostat, which Neil Kinnock, the commission’s vice-president, said gave rise to deep concerns.” http://www.guardian.co.uk/euro/story/0,11306,1004606,00.html. 25
Page 2 and 3: Christian Russau Enforcement of int
Page 4 and 5: Preface Since the end of 1999 the C
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(EU) and the Common Market of the South (MERCOSUR)? - FDCL

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