BRUSSELS — Both sides knew it would end like this.
By leaving the most contentious issues until the finale of their yearslong negotiation on a new agreement on trade, political dialogue, and development cooperation, the European Union and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States always risked a bumpy landing.
And so it was on Monday this week, when the EU’s chief negotiator, Jutta Urpilainen, issued what the OACPS side took as an “ultimatum.” Having publicly stated in a webinar the week before that she wanted a deal by mid-July, the EU commissioner for international partnerships said in a teleconference with her counterpart Robert Dussey, foreign minister of Togo, that OACPS had until Wednesday evening to lock in compromises on a range issues, including migration and efforts to get African states to accept the return of undocumented migrants from Europe. Returns were envisaged under the previous Cotonou Agreement, but with no mechanism to implement it, nothing happened.