Andorra suspends State Pact meetings over EU 'mixed' status uncertainty

The Andorran government has suspended two planned meetings of the State Pact on the Association Agreement with the European Union and delayed the next session until mid‑December while awaiting clarification from EU partners and an official response from the Council of the European Union. The sessions scheduled for 26 November and 10 December were officially cancelled; in a letter to Pact members Prime Minister Xavier Espot urged discretion and asked participants to avoid proactive initiatives that could be seen as pressuring the negotiations.

Espot said the pause aims to prevent any Andorran move or statement that might further strain relations with France. Paris has pushed for the agreement to be classified as “mixed,” which would require ratification by national parliaments of EU member states in addition to EU‑level approval. That position, backed by countries including Belgium, Hungary and the Netherlands, would slow the process and has complicated internal preparations in Andorra. Espot described the mixed character as “merely formal” with no effect on the agreement’s substance, but said the legal uncertainty makes it inappropriate to advance domestic steps tied to the text.

French ambassador to Andorra Nicolas Eybalin had warned that a rejection or mishandling of the accord could harm bilateral ties and called for a constructive, unified message from Andorran authorities. Espot framed the suspension as a measure to protect bilateral relations, noting France’s role as one of Andorra’s guarantor states and the co‑prince represented by Emmanuel Macron.

On the domestic front, Espot reiterated his government’s commitment to hold a politically binding referendum on the Association Agreement but said the prerequisites for calling it have not been met. He argued a referendum would be pointless while the text’s legal nature is unsettled, the European Commission has not been mandated to sign it, and the European Parliament has not ratified the accord. If the agreement is ultimately classified as mixed, Espot said the referendum scenario would change: it may be necessary to wait for some national parliaments to ratify the pact, which would affect timing and conditions for any consultation. He acknowledged that waiting for ratification by every national parliament would be “very complicated,” but left open the possibility of timing the referendum to particular developments.

Espot also warned against politicising what he described as a technical debate and insisted citizens must have all necessary information to decide “maturely and consciously.” He acknowledged he cannot guarantee the referendum will take place within the current legislature and criticised political actors who, he said, push for an early consultation primarily to destabilise the government.

The suspension buys time for Brussels‑level clarification but leaves internal coordination on the Association Agreement on hold and delays decisions and plans for public consultation.