The eight Latin-American banana-producing nations at the centre of the dispute with the European Union over its banana import regime have called on the EU authorities to negotiate with it in order to come up with a new regime that will respect the rights and trade interests of their region.
The call came following a meeting in Panama on Monday of ministers from Brazil, Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama to try and agree a common and acceptable position.
Costa Rican trade minister Manuel González has also called on the US government to intervene in the negotiations between the EU trading bloc and its Latin American trading partners.
The European Union council of foreign ministers will meet on November 21 to look at approving a new tariff figure and this week it asked the commission to come up with an alternative proposed figure to try and resolve the ongoing dispute.
The EU’s previous suggested tariff of e187 per tonne for imports was rejected for being to high by a disputes panel of the World Trade Organisation as well as the eight Latin American nations.
Fruit from the region is imported into the EU under the existing regime on a quota basis subject to a e75 a tonne tariff.
“Now is the time for the EU to put a new tariff proposal on the negotiating table,” the Panamanian trade and industry minister Alejandro Ferrer declared after this week’s meeting.
No comments yet