European Struggle Against an Algerian Sovereign Decision Regarding “Halal” Meat

Days after the outbreak of the El Mordjene issue and the ban on the entry of this Algerian product into the European Union countries, this time it was the turn of a double European Struggle from the Parliament and the Commission, through annoyance and clear nose-pinching from Brussels towards an Algerian sovereign decision related to adopting the “Halal” label issued by the Grand Mosque of Paris only, as a condition for exporting meat from the bloc countries to Algeria.
In this context, the response of the European Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, to a question in the European Parliament by a Dutch MP regarding the halal meat certificate issued by the Grand Mosque of Paris, according to what was reported by several European media outlets, included blatant interference in the affairs of an Algerian sovereign decision, as he said that “the Commission has contacted the Algerian authorities on several occasions, and expressed its deep concern about this measure and urged them to reconsider it.”
The response of the European Union Trade Commissioner, Valdis Dombrovskis, stated that the European Commission is aware of the serious negative effects on the export of agricultural food products to Algeria, and thus the economic repercussions on products manufactured in the European Union, noting that the issue remains unresolved to date.
The European official stressed that “the Commission spares no effort to work on improving trade and investment relations with Algeria, which generally remain very difficult,” he claimed, explaining that “the executive authorities of the European Union at the technical and political levels to address all aspects that, according to him, hinder the access of European products to the Algerian market.
The European official continued his blatant interference in Algerian sovereign decisions, when he said that “the European Commission believes that Algeria’s implementation, in June 2023, of the additional procedure for issuing halal certificates will significantly hinder trade with the European Union,” considering that this is “an unsatisfactory obstacle that disturbs bilateral relations.”
The European interference in the affairs of a sovereign decision by Algeria regarding the halal label for the export of European meat to our country came in response to a written inquiry accompanied by a request for an answer, sent by the Dutch member of the European Parliament, Bert Jan Roisan, to the European Commission, dated July 25, which I have seen “Al-Shorouk”.
The inquiry stated that Algeria has been applying, since the end of last year, an additional condition for halal certification on European Union products exported to it, noting that the Algerian authorities have only accepted halal certificates issued by the Grand Mosque of Paris, which results in an additional cost to obtain these certificates compared to other certificates.
The document included three questions, all of which aimed to interfere in Algeria’s sovereign decision-making affairs. The first question was: “Does the Commission consider the Algerian procedure of accepting halal certificates from the Grand Mosque of Paris only unreasonable and disproportionate?”
The second question was as follows: “Does the Commission consider that Algeria is discriminating against European exporters by imposing this procedure on products originating in the European Union only?”, while the third question was: “Is it possible to obtain the removal of this additional condition as part of negotiations with Algeria within the framework of the dispute settlement procedure launched in June 2024 under the partnership agreement between the two parties?”