Brussels Seeks English-Only Trade Agreements Despite French Resistance

The European Commission has forwarded the EU-India trade deal, finalized last January, to EU member states for ratification — submitted solely in English, drawing immediate objections from France.

The EU executive aims to accelerate the ratification of future trade agreements by eliminating the requirement to translate them into the bloc’s 24 official languages.

“When President von der Leyen traveled to India in January to finalize negotiations on this landmark agreement, she pledged to see it ratified within this calendar year,” said Commission Deputy Chief Spokesperson Olof Gill on Friday. “That ambition remains unchanged.”

However, as first reported by Euronews in March, Paris is refusing to accept single-language documents for expedited ratification, maintaining that translation is a binding obligation — and not merely into French, but into all working languages of the EU institutions.

French officials argue that EU and national lawmakers require access to trade deals in every official language, noting that such agreements contain technical provisions whose subtleties can only be fully grasped once properly translated.

Nevertheless, ratification of EU trade deals requires the approval of the European Parliament, and in some cases, that of national parliaments as well.

Translation Ahead of European Parliament Vote

The Commission confirmed on Friday that the EU-India trade deal will be translated following the signing process by EU countries, but before it is sent to the European Parliament for approval. Once ratified, the agreement will be published in the Official Journal in all official EU languages.

“What we are proposing is that the agreement be signed in the language of negotiations — that is, English — and that all EU language versions become available as soon as possible during the process and certainly before the agreement is voted on in the European Parliament,” Gill added.

It remains uncertain whether the Commission’s assurances will be sufficient to overcome French opposition to this new approach to ratification.

Paris previously led resistance against the EU-Mercosur agreement, finalized in December 2024, though on trade-related grounds. EU farmers expressed concern about unfair competition from Latin American agricultural products entering the European market.

Since then, ratification of the deal with the Latin American bloc has been suspended after MEPs seized the Court of Justice of the European Union with a legal referral.

In this instance, French resistance appears to stem from non-trade-related considerations, as France broadly supports the EU-India trade deal in principle.

The agreement does not cover agricultural products and was negotiated with a partner regarded by Paris as the most strategically significant in the Asia-Pacific region.

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