EU, US sign Swift agreement

The United States and the European Union have signed an agreement on the transfer to US counter-terrorism authorities of information on international bank transfers conducted through the Swift system. The signing in Brussels today (28 June) was made possible after Spain, the current holder of the rotating presidency of the Council of Ministers, accepted demands from MEPs for changes to the text. The changes, which were accepted by the US, pave the way for the European Parliament to approve the agreement at its last plenary before the summer break, in Strasbourg next week. EU member states gave their written consent today.

The agreement was signed by Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, Spain’s interior minister, and Michael Dodman, the chargé d’affaires of the US mission to the EU. Cecilia Malmström, the European commissioner for home affairs who had negotiated the agreement, was also present.

Final agreement on the new wording was reached on Friday (25 January). After the draft agreement had been initialled by Malmström on 10 June, MEPs had demanded changes to the text concerning the bulk transfer of data, the creation of an EU counterpart to the US Terrorist Finance Tracking Programme (TFTP), and EU oversight of TFTP data-processing on US soil.

The three largest political groups in the Parliament – the centre-right EPP, centre-left PES and liberal ALDE – are now in favour of the agreement. In February, the Parliament, using new powers under the EU’s Treaty of Lisbon, had rejected an interim agreement on Swift transfers.