Over the past 24 hours, several European media outlets have reported on what is increasingly being described as an the EU scandal: The EU Commission pushing through a new trade agreement. 

The process has unfolded without including the Saharawi people, and forces EU member states to take a position within just a few days. 

Here are some of the reactions: 

Hugh Lovatt, Western Sahara expert at the think tank European Council on Foreign Relations questions how Denmark can assess that the draft complies with the ruling of the EU Court of Justice. To Danwatch:

• “really disappointing” [...] “It may not be surprising, but it is nevertheless striking how, despite the EU Court’s ruling, they are once again ready to go against the Sahrawis’ right to control their own resources”.
• “They have recycled the core elements of the invalid trade agreement. One would think that the EU’s best lawyers could come up with an elegant loophole in international law, but they have no convincing legal argument for how a trade agreement with Morocco can include goods originating in Western Sahara. They are simply trying more of the same”.
• Commenting on the claims of “sustainable” development, Lovatt notes: “Firstly, it is unclear how this sustainable development is to be ensured. Secondly, it is highly doubtful whether it is legally valid to argue that the Sahrawis have given their consent to the agreement simply because the EU expects them to benefit from it. Thirdly, the wording reinforces the Sahrawis’ position as a kind of aid recipients. They could have been involved in the negotiations and asked what they actually want, but here the premise is that it is the EU that decides what the Sahrawis need — and not the Sahrawis themselves”.

Andrea Maria Pelliconi, a lecturer in international law at the University of Southampton. To Danwatch: 

• Underlines that if the new trade agreement is to comply with the EU Court of Justice ruling, it is not sufficient that benefits are created for “the people of Western Sahara”.
  “The Sahrawis are heavily marginalized in their own land, and the majority of the inhabitants in Western Sahara are Moroccan settlers. Therefore, it is not enough to create jobs or develop infrastructure for ‘the people of Western Sahara.’ The EU must ensure that it is specifically the Sahrawis who benefit from the initiatives,” says Pelliconi

Carmelo Barrio (Partido Popular), Member of Congress, on Twitter:

• “This is ​​either a hoax or a mistake. Otherwise, it would be outrageous. The rulings of the Court of Justice of the EU must be complied with even by the European Commission. This occupation of the #Sahara cannot be certified from Europe. Morocco is the Israel of Africa. Or not?”

Eoghan Gilmartin, journalist, Jacobin. On Twitter:

• “Incredible that the European Commission is still trying to find a way to avoid implementing the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)'s landmark ruling on Western Sahara and its non-inclusion in the EU-Moroccan trade deal. International law is clear: only the Sahrawi people can give their consent on the terms of such a deal, not an occupation regime.”

Spanish young farmers’a association ASAJA, On Twitter:

• “At ASAJA, we warn about the legal shortcut in the EU to sneak products from the Sahara into the agreement with Morocco. Direct harm to Spanish producers (tomatoes, melons) and price distortions. We call for: a vote against, compliance with the CJEU, safeguards and controls, and an impact study.”

José María Castilla, Brussels director of the Spanish young farmers’a association ASAJA. To El Debate:

• “This would not have obtained approval in Parliament, but it is more than evident that this has been agreed upon by the main parties concerned, Spain and France, so that the other countries cannot block it.”
• States that the implementation will not only have consequences for Spanish production of tomatoes and melons, but will also create distortions in other products. “For example, if Almería loses tomato production due to lack of competitiveness in favor of others such as cucumbers or zucchini, the supply of the latter will multiply and prices will fall,”.

Miguel Muñoz Ortega, journalist, Publico. On Twitter:

• “The information that is emerging about the new EU trade agreement with Morocco regarding Western Sahara is extremely worrying, although not surprising. They are the same ones who then invoke ‘international law.’”

Anonymous source “close to the matter”. To Euractiv:

• “The new agreement uses the term ‘region of origin’ for products from Western Sahara, but this doesn’t exist in EU or international trade law”.
• “It looks like the Commission is ready to erase Western Sahara’s customs code and replace it with this vague term.”
• “In the end, it’s just a rerun of the previous deal with Morocco, with weaker wording to keep Rabat happy [...] It won’t stand up in Court, and the Commission knows it. They’re just trying to buy time”.
• “The proposal is designed for provisional application, meaning it would take effect before MEPs vote. Applying the deal provisionally amounts to a “fait accompli” and “almost a declaration of war on the Parliament’s trade committee,”

David Bollero, journalist in Publico, On Twitter:

• “Europe is disgusting. After its stance on the genocide in Gaza, it now does not even respect the rulings of the European Court of Justice and maneuvers in the dark with #Morocco to continue plundering #WesternSahara. A failed project.”

Notice, lastly, on the other side, this one from EU Commission Trade Spokesperson Olof Gill, to EFE. 

• “Morocco is a strategic partner for the EU. Over the years, we have built a strong partnership based on joint and concrete actions. This extends to a wide range of areas, including trade first and foremost, but also migration and mobility, social progress, environmental sustainability, security, the digital sphere, and culture. To take this partnership to the next level, the EU intends to launch a strategic partnership with Morocco."
• "The debate in the European Parliament will take place in the coming weeks. Once both co-legislators (the European Parliament and Member States) give their consent, the international agreement can be concluded," the spokesperson explained.
• Told that the new proposal "extends the tariff preferences provided for in the Association Agreement between the European Union and Morocco to products from Western Sahara" and "replaces" the pact annulled by the EU Court of Justice.
• Told that EU intends to adopt a decision of the EU-Morocco Association Council on "certificates of origin," in addition to amending the Commission's delegated regulation on the labeling of fruit and vegetables.