EMMA THOMASSON, Pretoria | Friday 8.30am
THE government warned on Thursday that unless the European Union ratifies a long-awaited free trade deal soon, its implementation could not take place as planned next month.
Trade and Industry Minister Alec Irwin said, however, that a short delay will not be a major tragedy.
”The EU must make a decision soon,” he told a news conference. ”It should come into force in January or February. But if it comes into effect in March, the world is not going to break apart.” The deal was signed in October after over four years of tough negotiations and covers 90% of the $20-billion a year in trade between the 15-member block and SA.
Erwin said that some member states were holding up the agreement over concerns about the naming of certain wines and spirits. ”There is nothing we can do to help the Europeans. They must balance a very small interest against a much larger interest,” he said.
”Some of the member states are wanting us to renegotiate and that is an untenable position.” Parliament has ratified the accord, but failure to agree on a linked wines and spirits agreement has delayed final approval by national EU legislatures. Mediterranean countries — Spain, Portugal, Greece, France and Italy – have demanded fresh concessions over names like ”port”, ”sherry”, ”grappa” and ”ouzo”.
The government has already agreed to phase out the use of the labels ”port” and ”sherry” in export markets over five to eight years and at home over 12 years, but the EU is still seeking further reassurance that this deal will be fully implemented. — Reuters