Business Mirror - 17 February 2025
‘Intersessional sessions’ to fast-track EU-PHL FTA
By Andrea E. San Juan
Negotiating teams will hold “intersessional sessions” to fast-track the talks for the Philippines’ free trade deal with the 27-member bloc European Union (EU).
Allan B. Gepty, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary for International Trade Group, revealed this as the Philippines and EU wrapped up their second round of talks for a free trade deal last week.
“We had a productive second round of negotiations. Discussions were very constructive,” Gepty told the BusinessMirror in a Viber message over the weekend.
With this, the country’s chief negotiator for the free trade agreement (FTA) with the EU noted: “We will also hold intersessional sessions to fast-track the negotiations,” adding that these meetings will be held virtually.
Gepty said the third round of negotiations will take place in June in Brussels.
In a social media post, DTI’s Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Brussels noted that the second round of the PH-EU FTA Negotiations was “successfully” concluded in Manila from February 10 to 14, 2025.
“With key discussions on trade, investment, and sustainability, both sides continue to work towards a mutually beneficial and forward-looking agreement,” said PTIC-Brussels.
Intersessional sessions are held in-between the scheduled rounds of negotiations.
The first round for negotiations took place in October 2024 after the EU and the Philippines agreed to resume talks in March 2024.
According to the European Commission’s official website, the EU is “working towards building a framework of trade agreements with the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations [Asean].”
The EC noted that the objective is for bilateral trade agreements with individual Asean countries to serve as “building blocks” towards a future region-to-region agreement between the EU and Asean.
At a forum held in January of this year, EU Ambassador to the Philippines Massimo Santoro underscored that the talks for a free trade deal between EU and the Philippines are expected to deliver “well and fast.”
Building on what he called “a very positive momentum,” he underscored the need for the bilateral trade relations between the two parties to be strengthened as the Philippines is “only the sixth economic partner of the European Union among Asean countries.”
“We can do more. We can do more considering the potential and the size of the Philippine market and the resources of the country,” Santoro underscored during the said forum.
The EU ambassador said the objective of the free trade deal is to bring bilateral economic ties between the EU and the Philippines to a “new higher level.”
“Through the FTA, we aim at facilitating not only merchandise trade, but also trade in services and to create more incentives for investment,” said Santoro.
While the trade and investment figures for 2024 have not yet been released, Santoro said the bilateral exchanges between the 27-member bloc EU and the Philippines “are not at the level of our mutual ambitions.”
The EU ambassador to the Philippines said the 27-member bloc considers the Philippines a crucial partner in the Indo-Pacific region. Moreover, he said the EU also sees the “significant” economic potential of the country.
In 2023, the EU was the Philippines’ 5th largest trading partner, 6th export market and 6th import source.
Philippine exports to the EU amounted to $8.37 billion while imports from the 27-member bloc reached $7.79 billion.
In 2023, the top Philippine exports to the EU were: electronics, semiconductors, coconut oil and tuna.
The first round of talks for the PH-EU FTA took place in October 2024 after both parties announced the resumption of negotiations in March 2024.
