by EUObserver News Staff at EUObserver
French president Emmanuel Macron announced on Friday that France will leave the controversial Energy Charter Treaty, following Poland, Spain and the Netherlands. All EU states are signatories of the treaty bar Italy which withdrew in 2016 — but is still involved in arbitration because this treaty protects investments for decades. Germany has also announced plans to withdraw from this treaty. EU countries’ exit stampede comes after two-year modernisation talks.
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Why Are EU Countries Leaving the Energy Charter Treaty?
The Netherlands has been the last EU country to announce that it would quit the controversial Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) over climate concerns — after Poland and Spain.
The announcement comes after attempts to modernise the treaty, in a bid to make it compatible with the 2015 Paris Agreement.
But some EU capitals are not convinced by the final text, which they still see as obsolete.
This little-known international agreement,…