On Global Gateway – past impacts and future orientation

PA_NonLeg

AMENDMENTS

The Committee on International Trade submits the following to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Development, as the committee responsible:

Amendment 1

Motion for a resolution

Recital E a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

Ea. whereas the Global Gateway is a key geo-economic instrument that aims to defend and advance the EU’s strategic economic interests in a global environment marked by competing initiatives such as China’s Belt and Road Initiative; whereas Global Gateway projects should decisively contribute to the diversification of supply chains in strategic sectors, including energy, critical raw materials, transport, digital infrastructure and defence-related technologies;

Amendment 2

Motion for a resolution

Recital G a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

Ga. whereas EU funding under the Global Gateway must not benefit entities that undermine European security and economic interests, including companies under EU sanctions, state-owned or state-controlled enterprises from systemic rivals, or operators involved in sanctions circumvention, the transfer of dual-use technologies to Russia or other hostile activities; whereas participation in Global Gateway projects should be conditional on full compliance with EU restrictive measures and on credible efforts to prevent sanctions circumvention;

Amendment 3

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 2

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

2. Underlines that in times of new geostrategic challenges such as the dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and deepening cuts in official development assistance (ODA), EU foreign and security policy and development actors must coordinate their actions in order to increase the EU’s presence and visibility worldwide by means of mutually beneficial investments that expand the Union’s influence and weight, and promote inclusive growth in partner countries and progress towards achieving the SDGs;

2. Underlines that in times of new geostrategic challenges such as the dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and deepening cuts in official development assistance (ODA), EU foreign and security policy and development actors must coordinate their actions in order to strengthen the EU’s presence and visibility worldwide by means of mutually beneficial investments that expand the Union’s influence and weight, and promote inclusive growth in partner countries and progress towards achieving the SDGs;

Amendment 4

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 2 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

2a. Calls for it to be ensured that EU funds do not support actors whose activities run counter to the interests of the EU and the values it represents;

Amendment 5

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 6 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

6a. Calls for full transparency and accountability in all Global Gateway projects and partnerships;

Amendment 6

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 7

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

7. Calls for effective measurement of the impact of Global Gateway projects locally, including their social outcomes; recommends monitoring the degree and success of the involvement of European companies;

7. Calls for effective measurement of the impact of Global Gateway projects locally, including their social outcomes; calls for the degree and success of the involvement of European companies to be monitored;

Amendment 7

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 10

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

10. Calls for the EU to strengthen its strategic position, partnerships and global credibility by offering, through the Global Gateway, a sustainable, transparent and democratic alternative to competing infrastructure initiatives;

10. Calls for the EU to strengthen its strategic position, partnerships and global credibility by offering, through the Global Gateway, a sustainable, transparent and democratic alternative to competing infrastructure initiatives; underlines that the Global Gateway must be a credible alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Russian-backed projects, delivering concrete advantages to the EU in terms of secure access to critical raw materials, diversified transport corridors, trusted digital connectivity and resilient supply chains;

Amendment 8

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 15

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

15. Calls for deeper coordination with partners, including the G7, the G20 and the UN, with a view to maximising the collective impact and ensuring coherent standards, financing and project implementation;

15. Calls for deeper coordination with partners, including the G7, the G20 and the UN, with a view to maximising the collective impact and ensuring coherent standards, financing and project implementation; stresses that particular focus should be given to enhancing cooperation with the UN’s Group of 77 of developing countries;

Amendment 9

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 24 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

24a. Calls on the European Court of Auditors to assess the effectiveness, transparency and compliance of both implemented and planned Global Gateway projects;

Amendment 10

Motion for a resolution

Subheading 4 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

Trade and investment promotion

Amendment 11

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 a (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35a. Stresses that the Global Gateway should, for projects with a trade and investment dimension, enhance and facilitate mutually beneficial trade and investment relations, notably by developing and opening new trade routes and business opportunities, including for small and medium-sized enterprises, and by supporting the development and modernisation of trade-enabling infrastructure, which is key to addressing high trade costs; recognises the fact that, in an increasingly competitive global environment where trade dependencies are heavily weaponised and used as tools of economic coercion, the Global Gateway plays a key role in supporting the diversification of supply chains, reducing critical dependencies in key sectors, strengthening the EU’s geopolitical position and enhancing its strategic resilience, economic security and long-term competitiveness, as highlighted in the Draghi report, while, in accordance with EU policy coherence for development, supporting partner countries’ development priorities and respecting their democratic decision-making processes;

Amendment 12

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 b (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35b. Stresses that the success of Global Gateway investments depends on a stable and predictable trade framework; calls for Global Gateway investments to include, where relevant, trade-facilitation measures, ensuring real, sustainable development and market-access gains and increased export potential for partner countries; calls for synergies to be ensured between Global Gateway initiatives and the EU’s trade policy, including trade agreements, as well as implementation priorities under their Trade and Sustainable Development chapters, the Generalised Scheme of Preferences and other existing trade frameworks and mechanisms; underlines that this also requires the integration of security and strategic-risk screening for Global Gateway flagship projects, in particular where state-controlled companies from authoritarian states may gain control over critical digital, maritime, transport, energy or communications infrastructure; calls for the Global Gateway to be fully aligned with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and, to the greatest extent possible, to support the inclusion of partner countries in the rules-based regional and global trade system; calls on the Commission to assess the trade and investment flows generated under the Global Gateway;

Amendment 13

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 c (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35c. Calls for greater transparency in the selection, governance and monitoring of Global Gateway projects, including the publication of selection criteria, procurement outcomes and expected trade impacts, to ensure predictability and foster partner-country trust;

Amendment 14

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 d (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35d. Calls for the Global Gateway to engage the private sector more directly, through trade and investment promotion, and to secure the commitment of European businesses to engage in flagship projects with partner countries; emphasises that the selection of projects should include an analysis of the areas in which EU-based companies are competitive on a global level in order to ensure that the Global Gateway contributes to the EU’s overall competitiveness; stresses that the effective participation of small and medium-sized enterprises, including cooperatives and social economy enterprises, in Global Gateway projects should be actively promoted, including through targeted outreach, simplified access to tenders, and support mechanisms, to enhance their international competitiveness; calls for improved and streamlined communication about the Global Gateway initiative in partner countries; calls for it to be ensured that local communities and civil society, both in partner countries and the EU, are involved in the implementation of the Global Gateway to ensure inclusive development and a fair distribution of benefits, including by obtaining, where relevant, the free, prior and informed consent of indigenous peoples; calls on the Commission to strengthen its engagement with the Global Gateway Civil Society and Local Authorities Advisory Platform in the selection, design, implementation and monitoring of Global Gateway projects;

Amendment 15

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 e (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35e. Expresses concern over reports that some EU-funded projects are being built by Chinese companies, with Chinese firms at times securing more European Investment Bank-funded contracts than EU firms; calls for a level playing field to be ensured in order to boost the participation of European companies so that more of them can be involved in and benefit from such projects; recommends procurement practices that prioritise the best price-quality ratio over the lowest price in order to promote fair competition and ensure alignment with EU values; calls on the Commission and the European Investment Bank to reinforce strategic procurement criteria, including security, reliability, sustainability and competitiveness;

Amendment 16

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 f (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35f. Emphasises the need for partnership and capacity building, alongside financial support; calls for increased technical assistance to support institutional capacity and regulatory reform, particularly aimed at streamlining trade processes and strengthening partner countries’ ability to comply with international standards, including the WTO’s sanitary and phytosanitary standards, technical standards, sustainability standards, customs digitalisation and value-chain traceability; underlines that the Global Gateway must, nonetheless, respect domestic regulatory space and must not be conditional on regulatory reforms that weaken regulatory authorities;

Amendment 17

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 g (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35g. Calls for it to be ensured that the development of infrastructure supports and enhances intra-regional trade integration, particularly among Southern Neighbourhood, African, Latin American and Southeast Asian economies; calls for the Global Gateway to help address obstacles to regional economic integration, including the bottlenecks that have slowed the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area; underlines the importance of promoting intra-regional value chains, enhancing integrated regional connectivity and enabling economies of scale, including by providing support to overcome regulatory challenges and non-tariff barriers;

Amendment 18

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 h (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35h. Calls for the Global Gateway to support trade-enabling projects that promote socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable economic growth, integration and job creation while respecting human rights; underlines that these projects, notably transport corridors, must not come at the expense of employment conditions and labour and environmental protection; calls for it to be ensured that these projects enhance mutual competitiveness, including by enabling alignment with climate targets and supporting compliance with the EU’s trade-related autonomous sustainability measures that tackle carbon emissions, human rights violations and adverse environmental impacts; believes that while the Global Gateway seeks to secure the resilient critical raw materials supply chain that is necessary for the green transition and the economic security of the EU, it should also take into account inclusive development and ensure that trade partners benefit from resource extraction through local processing, the transfer of skills and know-how and the creation of added value for local communities; recalls that, in line with EU green diplomacy, the Global Gateway should contribute to the energy transition; calls for Global Gateway financing to ensure interoperability with EU standards, transparent procedures, and environmental, social and governance standards, including through continuous monitoring systems;

Amendment 19

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 i (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35i. Recalls the EU legislation and relevant UN and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development standards in the fields of anti-bribery, anti-corruption and financial integrity that EU companies are subject to; stresses the need for all companies involved in Global Gateway projects to comply with these standards; calls on the Commission to integrate appropriate integrity checks, risk-assessment and management tools, and monitoring systems into Global Gateway operations to prevent, detect and address corruption, illicit financial flows and other unethical conduct;

Amendment 20

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 35 j (new)

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

35j. Calls for export credit agencies to be better integrated into the EU’s financial architecture under the Global Gateway;

Amendment 21

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 37

Motion for a resolution

Amendment

37. Underlines that procurement policies, due diligence processes and the conception of tenders have a strong influence on the success or failure of Global Gateway projects; calls for more frequent use of criteria on quality, innovation, resilience and European participation;

37. Underlines that procurement policies, due diligence processes and the conception of tenders have a strong influence on the success or failure of Global Gateway projects; calls for more frequent use of criteria on quality, innovation, resilience and European participation; calls on the Commission and the Member States to make full use of the possibilities offered by EU public procurement and security legislation to give preference, where compatible with EU and WTO rules, to European and like-minded suppliers, and to exclude high-risk and non-trustworthy operators, in particular those controlled by governments engaging in aggressive foreign policy, cyber operations or economic coercion against the EU and its partners;

ANNEX: DECLARATION OF INPUT

Pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure, the rapporteur for opinion declares that he included in his opinion input on matters pertaining to the subject of the file that he received, in the preparation of the opinion, prior to the adoption thereof in committee, from the following interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register, or from the following representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies:

Representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies

Embassy of Djibouti in Belgium

Ambassador of Chad to the EU

Embassy of Senegal

The list above is drawn up under the exclusive responsibility of the rapporteur for opinion.

Where natural persons are identified in the list by their name, by their function or by both, the rapporteur for opinion declares that he has submitted to the natural persons concerned the European Parliament’s Data Protection Notice No 484 (https://www.europarl.europa.eu/data-protect/index.do), which sets out the conditions applicable to the processing of their personal data and the rights linked to that processing.

INFORMATION ON ADOPTION BY THE COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

Date adopted

27.1.2026

Result of final vote

+:

–:

0:

39

3

0

FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL BY THE COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

Key to symbols: