EC report to include sectorial clauses for certain fields

The report on Romania that the European Commission will present next week will be positive, and recommend that the country should join on January 1, 2007, but will also include a series of sectorial clauses for certain fields such as agriculture, official sources in Brussels stated. “Another report of the European Commission may be drawn up by the middle of next year, analysing the progress of reform in the targeted fields,” the quoted sources stated. Premier Tariceanu (photo left) said in Brussels yesterday that he expected this month’s report of the European Commission on Romania to be fair and objective and mainly positive, despite some issues still not addressed primarily in the agricultural sector. He added the EC report would be based on the evaluation recently conducted by the European officials and on the progress Romania has made in the accession process. “I don’t expect a large number of domains to be considered as providing a cause for concern. Some progress is still necessary in justice reform and in the agricultural sector, with the payment and intervention agencies and the authorisation system, and we know that we won’t be able to address the issue of swine pest in due time, but I hope sectorial safeguarding clauses will not be applied unless where necessary,” Tariceanu said. The Premier reiterated that this safeguarding clause was an instrument that the European Commission can use at any time if necessary.