EU wants to speed up FTA with PH amid tariff uncertainties

By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora, Philippine News Agency

EUROPE DAY. European Union Ambassador to the Philippines Massimo Santoro delivers his remarks during the Europe Day 2025 reception at the Peninsula Manila on Thursday night (May 8, 2025). Foreign Affairs Acting Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro and Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Charles Brown accompanied the European envoy on the stage. (Photo by Joyce Rocamora)

MANILA – The European Union (EU) is interested in fast-tracking a free trade agreement (FTA) with the Philippines in the wake of global trade uncertainties fueled by the new tariff policies of the United States.

EU Ambassador to the Philippines Massimo Santoro on Thursday night said both the Philippines and the bloc have a “political wish” to speed up talks on the deal, which is seen to blunt the possible impact of the Trump administration’s new tariffs imposed on its partners.

“It’s not the tariffs in itself that are impacting the negotiation, but it’s the fact that when all those countries in the world, like us, the Philippines and many others, see that somebody wants to bring in tariff, etc.— what we consider obstacles to international free trade— it comes as a normal political response that we have even a stronger wish to have this FTA done faster,” he told reporters at the Europe Day 2025 reception in Makati City.

“It’s a way for us to protect our markets. The best way to protect markets is to make them free. This is the quintessence of our thinking,” he added.

In a separate interview, Foreign Affairs Acting Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro said the Philippine side hopes to have the FTA by “next year”.

“Of course, it has its own pace… An FTA is not easy to negotiate but I think there’s already an intention as well as the commitment to come up with an FTA,” she said.

The two sides finished two rounds of negotiations in October and February, with the next meeting scheduled for the third week of June in Brussels, Belgium.

Santoro, for his part, expressed optimism that this next set of talks would be “as fruitful as the previous ones”.

“What we, but also the Philippine side, want is to have something which is good in content for both sides, strong, fruitful and at the same time, possibly quick,” he said.

“We do not put artificial deadlines, but I must also observe that it is with the current (Marcos) administration that these negotiations are particularly fruitful. We have still, of course, some rounds to go,” he added.

The first negotiation for a Philippine-EU FTA was launched in December 2015, with the first round in May 2016 and the second in February 2017.

This was stalled after the EU raised concerns on humanitarian issues in the Philippines during those years.

The two sides’ working-level experts concluded a series of stock-taking discussions in December 2023 after the Manila visit of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, where she and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced their intention to re-launch the FTA negotiations.

The Philippines and the EU formally announced the resumption of negotiations in Brussels on March 18, 2024.