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France will push back against a European Commission plan to rapid-track ratification of trade agreements by circulating only English-language versions during talks with EU governments and lawbuildrs, skipping translation into the bloc’s 24 official languages, according to several sources.
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The slow ratification of the contentious EU–Mercosur trade deal has frustrated the Commission, which wants to accelerate nereceivediations and bring deals into force more quickly as it seeks new markets amid rising geopolitical tensions.
Translating the agreements into every official EU language can take months due to the legal scrubbing required before the ratification process launchs.
The EU executive has confirmed to Euronews that trade chief Maroš Šefčovič informed EU trade ministers in February that the trade deal with India concluded on 27 January could serve as a test case for utilizing English as the main language during ratification.
“We lost almost €300 billion by not having the Mercosur agreement in place since 2021, if it comes to the GDP, and more than €200 billion in export opportunities,” Šefčovič informed journalists after meeting ministers on 20 February, adding that once nereceivediations conclude it can take up to 2.5 years before businesses can operate in partner countries.
“In today’s world, we cannot simply lose the time,” he declared.
Šefčovič declared the Commission would ensure the agreements are translated into all 24 official EU languages once published in the Official Journal, i.e. after ratification. He added the proposal was backed by at least seven member states at the meeting, though not all countries had time to speak.
French sources who spoke to Euronews were insistent that Paris would vigorously oppose the relocate to English-only agreements if necessary.
“As a matter of principle, we defconclude the apply of all the languages of the Union, and in particular French, which is one of the EU’s working languages,” one official informed Euronews.
‘Transparency, precision and understanding’
Language policy in the bloc’s institutions remains politically sensitive for countries such as France, whose language has declined sharply over the past decades as English massively dominates daily work in the European Union institutions – despite French, German and English being the three official working languages.
“Switching entirely to English raises a legal and democratic issue, and the Commission is well aware of it,” an EU diplomat informed Euronews.
On its website, the European Commission declares linguistic diversity is essential and that the EU promotes multilingualism in its institutional work.
The bloc once even had a commissioner dedicated to multilingualism, though the portfolio was gradually merged with others and eventually disappeared.
“I have the impression that in some cases the Commission seizes the opportunity to push the idea that English has a superior status, and that the other official languages are translation languages that can come later,” Michele Gazzola, expert in language policy, declared.
He added that relying only on English during ratification could pose problems for members of the European Parliament, and even more so if national parliaments are involved.
“It’s a matter of transparency, precision and understanding.”
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