The European Commission's push to accelerate trade agreements by relying solely on English during ratification is set to collide with French resistance, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The proposal, which would skip translations into the EU's 24 official languages during the approval phase, has stirred a political backlash in Paris.
The Commission's frustration stems from the slow progress of the EU–Mercosur trade pact, which has been bogged down in ratification for years. With global tensions rising and new markets becoming ever more critical, Brussels wants to cut the time between the end of negotiations and the moment businesses can actually operate in partner countries.
Trade chief Maroš Šefčovič told EU trade ministers in February that the recently concluded deal with India, signed on 27 January, could serve as a test case for using English as the primary language during ratification. He highlighted the economic cost of delays: “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 added that after negotiations conclude, it can take up to two and a half years before businesses can reap the benefits. “In today's world, we cannot simply lose the time,” he told journalists following a ministerial meeting on 20 February.
The Commission has assured that once a deal is ratified and published in the Official Journal, it would be translated into all official EU languages. Šefčovič also noted that at least seven member states backed the idea during the February meeting, though not all countries had the chance to speak.
France digs in
French officials, however, are adamant. “As a matter of principle, we defend the use of all the languages of the Union, and in particular French, which is one of the EU’s working languages,” one official told Euronews. Another French source warned that “switching entirely to English raises a legal and democratic issue, and the Commission is well aware of it.”
The language question is politically charged in France, where the dominance of English in EU institutions has eroded the status of French over the decades. Despite French, German, and English being the three official working languages, English now overwhelmingly dominates daily operations in Brussels.
Michele Gazzola, an expert in language policy, sees a worrying trend: “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.” He added that relying only on English could create problems for members of the European Parliament, and even more so if national parliaments are involved.
The European Commission's own website stresses that 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 that portfolio was gradually merged and eventually disappeared.
For now, the Commission appears determined to press ahead, but the French blockade could derail the plan. The debate touches on fundamental questions about transparency, democratic legitimacy, and the very identity of the European project. As the EU seeks to assert itself on the global stage, the language it uses to negotiate its trade deals may prove as contentious as the deals themselves.
