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EU grants duty-free access to West Bank, Gaza food exports

13 April 2011, 17:32 CET
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(BRUSSELS) - The European Union granted Wednesday duty-free access to farm and fisheries products from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, in its latest sign of growing support for a Palestinian state.

Chief EU diplomat Catherine Ashton signed a deal with Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad giving "immediate duty free access to the EU market" of half a billion consumers for the next 10 years.

The "only exception" is a "specific duty for imports of fruit and vegetables" under what is known as an "entry price system," which prevents Palestinian exporters from radically undercutting domestic EU growers and rival exporters.

"This duty will remain applicable if these entry prices are not respected," a statement said.

"Facilitating Palestinian trade is a crucial element of the state-building process which the EU is supporting both politically and financially," said Ashton, calling the agreement "the tangible expression of our support."

The Palestinian Authority is one of the EU's smallest trading partners worldwide, with imports worth just 6.1 million euros ($8.8 million) in 2009.

Ashton is the EU's top representative within the diplomatic Quartet, alongside the United States, Russia and the United Nations, and a keen advocate of resuming Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.


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