The Twenty-Seven will try to unblock their negotiations this week with MEPs on the reform of the common agricultural policy (CAP), the Portuguese Minister of Agriculture said on Tuesday, deeming
"vital"
that a compromise be found d 'here June.
Read also: Agriculture: MEPs adopt the new CAP
Meeting in Brussels, European agriculture ministers adopted on Tuesday four sets of
"compromise"
proposals with a
view to relaunching talks, currently at a standstill, with the European Parliament, said Maria do Céu Antunes during a meeting. press conference.
The ministers of the Twenty-Seven agreed in October on a reform of the CAP which should apply from January 2023 to make European agriculture greener.
At the same time, the European Parliament adopted its own roadmap, proposing in particular to make aid to farmers conditional on compliance with even stricter environmental rules.
Since then, MEPs, member states and the European Commission have negotiated a compromise on the basis of their respective proposals, but discussions have stalled since January.
Tuesday's meeting allowed
"to obtain the necessary flexibility to move forward in talks with Parliament without jeopardizing the principles of the reform,"
said Maria do Céu Antunes, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the EU.
She did not deliver any details.
The three separate negotiations undertaken so far on the three texts constituting the CAP will be brought together for the first time on Friday in a single discussion, in order to facilitate compromises.
Towards an agreement in May
"This is a further step towards a global agreement (...) a crucial moment to see if each institution takes its responsibilities",
observed the Portuguese minister, noting that the ball was now in the court of MEPs.
"We hope for an agreement by the end of our presidency," at the
end of June,
"any postponement would jeopardize the future of European agriculture,"
she warned.
EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski said he was
"confident"
that a
"very good"
final agreement could be reached
"in May"
.
"This is not a deadline, but something that we are trying to aim for,"
tempers a European official.
At the heart of the new CAP, eco-schemes - bonuses granted to farmers participating in more demanding environmental programs - will become compulsory.
The 27 want states to devote at least 20% of direct EU payments to operators to this, but MEPs are proposing a threshold of 35%.
Parliamentarians and states are also opposed to increasing aid to small farms, the leeway devolved to governments to distribute European funds and the inclusion of targets for reducing the use of pesticides.
With an envelope of around 387 billion euros over seven years, the CAP is the EU's largest budget item.
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