The following table describes the status, the proposer and other metadata of this motion.
| Consultation: | FYEG General Assembly 2026 |
|---|---|
| Agenda item: | 8. Resolutions |
| Proposer: | Les Jeunes Écologistes |
| Status: | Published |
| Submitted: | 04/15/2026, 17:53 |
R6: Holding EU Trading Partners Accountable. - Les Jeunes Écologistes
Motion text
Holding EU Trading Partners Accountable: Prioritising Human Rights Over
Corporate Profit
Preamble
The Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG)...
- Is deeply concerned by the European Union's continued perpetuation of
trade agreements that actively infringe upon our foundational political
values and human rights commitments.
- Acknowledges that the international rules-based order is rapidly eroding
as current economic policies consistently prioritize profit and market
access over the well-being and fundamental rights of populations. As young
greens, we have a profound responsibility to challenge this structural
injustice.
- Demands an intersectional, values-based approach to international
relations where human rights conditionality is absolute, and where the EU
utilizes its vast economic leverage to protect the vulnerable rather than
rewarding authoritarianism.
This motion addresses the systemic failure of the EU to hold its international
trading partners accountable. The current geopolitical landscape demonstrates a
clear overestimation of the importance of trade over the good quality of life of
citizens, benefiting a few wealthier actors at the expense of marginalized
communities.
The hypocrisy of our current system is glaringly evident in our bilateral
relations. The EU remains Israel's biggest trading partner, with bilateral trade
in goods amounting to €42.6 billion in 2024.
Rather than leveraging the overarching EU-Israel Association Agreement to demand
an end to human rights violations, the EU relies on a weak "Technical
Arrangement" that merely denies tariff preferences to settlement goods based on
postal codes.
Similarly, the EU eagerly concluded the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment
(CAI) with China in principle in December 2020, ignoring alleged severe human
rights abuses in Xinjiang. The deal was only halted after China imposed direct
counter-sanctions on European Parliament members.
Furthermore, in the proposed EU-US Agreement on Reciprocal, Fair, and Balanced
Trade, the EU explicitly committed to ensuring that critical accountability
frameworks, such as the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive
(CSDDD), the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), and the
Regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR), would not pose "undue
restrictions" on transatlantic trade. This demonstrates a systemic willingness
to trade away our environmental and human rights standards for tariff
reductions.
Political Analysis
The Structural Injustice of Profit-Driven Trade The core structural injustice
driving our trade policy is the blatant subordination of human rights and
environmental limits to corporate interests. The neoliberal framework assumes
that unhindered market access is the ultimate political goal. By actively
agreeing to provide "flexibilities" for US companies regarding our Carbon Border
Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and corporate accountability directives, the EU
proves that its theoretical hard lines are easily erased by the prospect of
economic gain. This system concentrates wealth and power while exporting the
violence of climate degradation and human rights abuses to those least able to
defend themselves.
The Illusion of Technical Accountability Current mechanisms for holding trading
partners accountable are superficial and administratively focused, rather than
politically transformative. The EU's reliance on postal codes to differentiate
between products originating in Israel and those from occupied settlements is a
technical fix for a profound moral failing. Such arrangements utterly fail to
address the reality that these massive economic ties normalize, facilitate, and
fund systemic oppression. Similarly, the CAI negotiations revealed that EU
leaders were naive or willfully ignorant regarding China's human rights record,
proving that current diplomatic dialogues do not produce tangible protections
for oppressed populations.
The Youth Perspective on International Law For young people witnessing the
global rise of authoritarianism, values are the core of our political
resistance. International human rights and environmental laws only function if
every actor believes they have a tangible, enforceable impact on international
relations. When the EU actively compromises these values in major trade deals,
it erodes public trust and renders international law ineffective. True security
and prosperity require a systemic change that centers climate justice,
democracy, and anti-racism over unrestricted economic growth.
Call to Action
We demand concrete, decisive action from European institutions and our political
family to restore accountability:
- We urge the European Commission and the European Council to immediately
suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement. We note that technical
arrangements regarding settlement tariffs are vastly insufficient; all
trade privileges must be revoked until international human rights laws are
fully respected.
- We call on the European Parliament to officially and permanently terminate
the ratification process of the EU-China CAI. The EU must not ratify any
investment pact with a state actively committing systemic human rights
abuses.
- We demand that the European Commission refuses to implement the EU-US
trade agreement unless critical legislation like the CSDDD, CSRD, and EUDR
are fully enforced without exceptions for US corporations.
- We call upon the Green political family to integrate strict, binding human
rights and climate conditionality clauses into all future and existing
trade agreements within their political programmes, and to act
aggressively in legislative processes to enforce these red lines.
- We commit FYEG Member Organisations (MOs) to advocate nationally for
values-based trade policies. MOs will work alongside local civil society
to share best practices, expose the structural injustices of current
bilateral agreements, and mobilize youth across Europe to demand trade
justice.
In conclusion, the FYEG stands for a world where international trade is a
powerful tool for global equity, not a convenient shield for human rights
abusers. The current structural failure, prioritizing corporate profit and
market access over human lives and our ecological boundaries, must end. To
secure a just and sustainable future, the European Union must aggressively
utilize its economic leverage to hold trading partners accountable, thereby
defending and strengthening the international rules-based order for generations
to come.
Sources:
Agreement on Reciprocal, Fair, and Balanced Trade. (n.d.). In Wikipedia.
Retrieved April 15, 2026.
Chen, T., Whittard, R., & Ashley, E. (2026, April 2). Feta, Ouzo, Glera: key
changes under the Australia–EU trade agreements.
Comprehensive Agreement on Investment. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved April 15,
2026.
Directorate-General for Trade and Economic Security. (n.d.). EU trade relations
with Israel. Facts, figures and latest developments. European Commission,.
Rawnsley, J. (2026, March 26). European Parliament gives conditional approval to
EU-US trade deal. BBC News.
Supporters
Amendments
none