Brussels \u2013 EU sanctions against goods from illegal Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories could be nothing more than propaganda. Because with half\u2011hearted checks, wide loopholes in the rules and in twelve\u2011star verification systems, there is room for exploiting these gaps to buy goods under preferential tariff regimes rather than at higher duty rates. Strange, yet true. Seventy MEPs from various groups (Socialists, Greens, Liberals, the Radical Left, and non-attached members) have raised an issue to which the Commission has responded clumsily, effectively admitting that problems do exist.<\/p>\n
“If mislabelled, a product coming from an Israeli settlement in the OPTs (occupied Palestinian Territories, ed.) would illegally be granted the preferential tariff treatment <\/strong>set out in the EU-Israel Association Agreement,” the signatories of the parliamentary question<\/a> say. The Commissioner for Trade, Maro\u0161 \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d<\/strong>, responds: “the sole fact that food originating in This is also because, \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d continues, \u201cas a rule, the indications of origin in https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/2015\/11\/30\/israele-ue-diplomazia\/ <\/p>\n The response provided by \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d on behalf of the European Commission is based on the distinction between information on the label and information on preferential origin<\/strong>: the former is intended for consumers and concerns the place of production, composition, ingredients, instructions for use, and manufacturer\u2019s details; the latter is intended for customs authorities and serves to demonstrate that a product complies with the rules of origin laid down in a specific free trade agreement, specifically the EU\u2013Israel agreement. <\/p>\n
\nthe Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian territories is mislabelled as originating in
\nIsrael when presented to EU consumers, does not necessarily entail <\/strong>that the food in question
\nhas received preferential treatment upon its importation.” The fact that it cannot be concluded that the rules have necessarily been circumvented does not rule out the possibility that this may have occurred.<\/p>\n
\nthe labels are incumbent on \u2018food business operators\u2019 which are subject to the control by food
\nauthorities.\u201d The producer remains free to declare where the good in question was manufactured, and everything comes down to \u2018labels\u2019: a sticker is applied to the merchandise with the postal code and the name of the city or industrial area. On that basis, the applicable tariff regime is determined \u2014 preferential, non\u2011preferential, or increased due to sanctions, as the EU reasoning goes.<\/a><\/p>\n