European Union

Written by Eric Pichon,

© European Union, EPRS

L’accord de partenariat entre l’Union européenne et les pays d’Afrique, des Caraïbes et du Pacifique (ACP) expire en 2020. Le principal défi pour l’Union européenne est de maintenir ses relations dans la région, tout en restant fidèle aux valeurs promues dans les Traités européens. La renégociation de cet Accord de Cotonou offre l’opportunité de rationaliser les relations entre les pays ACP et l’Union, en tenant compte des objectifs de développement durable des Nations unies, des nouvelles stratégies européennes dans les régions concernées, des nouvelles ambitions des pays ACP et de l’évolution de l’équilibre des pouvoirs au niveau mondial. La question du financement est également sur la table.

Favoriser la prospérité, la stabilité et la démocratie chez les partenaires de l’UE permettrait, selon la Commission européenne et le Service européen pour l’action extérieure, de mieux faire face aux causes profondes de la migration irrégulière et des déplacements forcés.

La Commission européenne a présenté au Conseil son option privilégiée : un accord-cadre complété par des partenariats spécifiques avec les trois sous-régions. Le groupe ACP a adopté son mandat de négociation en mai 2018. Les négociations formelles devraient commencer à la fin de l’été 2018.

Négociations concernant un nouvel accord de partenariat UE-ACP Committee responsible: Développement (DEVE) 2018/2634 (RSP) Rapporteur: Linda McAvan (S&D)

Read the complete briefing on ‘Le futur partenariat de l’Union européenne avec les pays d’Afrique, des Caraïbes et du Pacifique‘ on the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

Click to view slideshow.

As Sebastian Kurz's government takes over the helm of EU-policy making for the next six months, Austrian MEPs from opposing sides weigh in on the EU's youngest prime minister's possible influence on the continent's future.

As long as the principles of the OECD, the World Bank and the IMF on transparency, public procurement and sustainable development are observed, the European Union is not hostile to China's New Silk Road project, Fraser Cameron told EURACTIV.

The European Commission has "no specific comment" to make about the resignation of Brexit secretary David Davis. Its spokesman said the EU "will continue to negotiate 'bona fide' with prime minister Theresa May and the UK government." Ahead of the publication of a white paper on future relationships by the UK this week, the commission "welcomes the fact that the UK government is having an in-depth discussion on futures projects."

The increasing flow of genuine cigarettes from Algeria into Europe is giving politicians a fresh headache.

The EU-Japan summit due on Wednesday in Brussels to sign a free trade agreement will take place next week in Tokyo, the European Commission announced on Monday. Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe cancelled his trip to Europe after mass flooding left at least 100 people dead in Japan in recent days.

Last week the US imposed billions of dollars in punitive tariffs on Chinese goods and China retaliated with similar measures. No one will emerge victorious from this war, commentators predict, and call for an overhaul of the entire global trade system.

The British cabinet has agreed on a plan for the Brexit negotiations. Prime Minister Theresa May may achieve her goal of pushing through a free trade zone with the EU. Brexit secretary David Davis, a proponent of a hard Brexit, has resigned. Some journalists find the government's soft Brexit approach outrageous. Others believe the final word hasn't been spoken yet.

Rainbow colours, imaginative costumes, music and hundreds of thousands of people on the streets: gay pride parades organised by the LGBT movement were held in many European cities on the past weekend. The press review presents voices from the events in Budapest, Madrid and the Polish pilgrimage site Częstochowa.

Commentators are thrilled but not surprised that with Belgium, England, France and Croatia, four European teams have reached the Fifa World Cup semi-finals. They are more surprised, however, by the extraordinary success of the Croatian team, which with its win over Russia has put itself on a par with the legendary "bronze generation" team that placed third in 1998.