Commission publishes negotiating proposals for modernised EU – Mexico trade deal

The Commission published today – as part of its commitmentfor a more transparent trade and investment policy – six initial European proposals for modernising various elements of the EU-Mexico agreement. These texts represent the EU’s initial negotiating position. Together with the proposals, the Commission has made available the report from the second round of talks that took place in Mexico between 22 and 25 November. Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said: “Sixteen years have passed since the current EU-Mexico deal became effective. Today we need to adapt it to a new trade reality. We’ve had some good initial talks with our Mexican counterparts, but to reach a good agreement we also need constructive engagement from interested parties, including civil society. The proposals published today, in line with our transparency commitments, will contribute to that discussion.” Amongst other things, the texts presented by the EU in the negotiations aim to: increase participation of European companies in Mexican public tenders and vice versa; increase cooperation on imports requirements related to food safety, plant and animal health; facilitate trade in energy products and raw materials; and broaden protection of intellectual property, including names of traditional European products known as ‘geographical indications’. The proposals seek to reduce unnecessary regulatory barriers to trade and increase the part of trade benefits that go to small companies. At the same time, their aim is to uphold levels of consumer, worker and environment protection and work together with Mexico towards sustainable development. Further EU proposals will be made available as the negotiations progress. EU negotiating proposals and other trade documents published since 14 October 2015 are available on the Transparency in Action portal