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News from the movements

Reject EU-PH FTA as serious concerns continue to hound ambitious corporate trade deal
Trade Justice Pilipinas questions and challenges the assertion of the Philippine government that this EU-Philippines FTA will be beneficial to the Philippines, particularly the Filipino working classes. It is high time that the government abandon the already discredited free market ideology.
EU Court adviser confirms separate and distinct status of Western Sahara
The Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union has this morning, 21 March 2024, published two Opinions in the appeal case on extending the EU-Morocco Fisheries Agreement and Trade Liberalisation Agreement into Western Sahara.
EU Court adviser: fruit from Western Sahara should not be labelled as from Morocco
“Products originating in the territory of Western Sahara should be labelled as such, to the exclusion of any other provenance”, the Advocate General to Europe’s top Court stated on Thursday 21 March 2024.
Report: EU-Morocco fisheries depends on illegal occupation
A new document published by the EU Commission reveals to what extent the EU-Morocco fisheries agreement has been depending on the stocks offshore occupied Western Sahara.
Trade agreements’ influence on the global mineral transition in critical raw materials
Trade agreements shape the global minerals transition by determining access to essential raw materials, influencing investment decisions, and enforcing environmental and social regulations. This article examines the underlying agenda of trade agreements in shaping the global minerals transition, including how they affect the distribution of benefits and risks.
NFUniversity: Colonial roots of modern free trade agreements
This talk will explore the colonial origins of modern international trade. Geopolitics, power relations, and corporate interests have shaped trade rules for over 500 years before it reached its current form.
New Pacific trade deal carries few benefits for the UK
Given the breadth of the policy areas that CPTPP accession will impact upon, how can UK membership have been subject to so little public debate? The answer is that the structures via which trade deals are negotiated and ratified are opaque and undemocratic.
Over 200 European organisations urge immediate suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement amidst Gaza crisis
About 200 European civil society groups, presented a petition to the EU Commission, the EU Council, and the European Parliament, calling for the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
Sign the petition to stop investors like Clive Palmer from suing our government for billions over climate change policies
Some international trade agreements allow foreign investors to sue the Australian government if a change in law or policy reduces their profits, even if the change protects public health or the environment.
Open letter: Suspending trade agreements and negotiations in response to the ICJ ruling on Gaza
UK groups call on the UK government to suspend trade privileges, agreements and negotiations with Israel.
50,000 people say another world is possible
Together with GRAIN, Local Futures organized the aforementioned workshop ‘Resisting Free Trade Agreements in South Asia’, which brought together activists from South Asian countries to confront the massive proliferation of free trade agreements
Ecuador’s "shock doctrine" referendum on ISDS
The Ecuadorian President is using the cover of internal conflict to bring investor-state dispute settlement back to Ecuador, in what a former Constitutional Court member calls a "democratic disaster."
Klesch Group’s legal paradox
Oil Refiner Klesch sues EU, Germany and Denmark over windfall profit tax while making record profits due to Ukraine invasion.
Trade Agreement CETA threatens small and medium-scale livestock farms in Italy: ARI
Associazione Rurale Italiana highlighted the deep damage that CETA causes to small and medium-scale livestock farms in Italy; the risks of further economic (and therefore decision-making) reinforcement of a single industrial group on the entire dairy sector.
EU breaks deadlock on the ECT, announces exit
Today marks a significant turning point as the Belgian EU Presidency brokered a deal with the European Commission and member states on the withdrawal from the Energy Charter Treaty.
Free Trade Agreements are Failed Trade Agreements. An alternative is now urgent and necessary
La Via Campesina’s Statement and Open call for Endorsement
How people power forced the UK to leave the Energy Charter Treaty
On 22 February 2024 the UK announced it will leave the climate-wrecking Energy Charter Treaty.
Billion-dollar exposure: Investor-state dispute settlement in Mozambique’s fossil fuel sector
Mozambique faces a substantial economic risk due to its exposure to investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) claims by foreign investors in its coal, oil, and gas sectors. The investment protections in the country’s international investment agreements and contracts, combined with ISDS, expose Mozambique to multi-billion-dollar financial liabilities.
Suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement!
In light of the deaths and suffering endured by the Palestinian people, a number of civil society organisations came together to draft a letter to European Union decision makers seeking the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
New patent rules in India-UK trade agreement will prioritise pharmaceutical profit over public health
The “TRIPS-Plus” provisions in the India-UK Agreement are a dangerous attempt to increase the power of pharmaceutical companies by placing profits before public health.