The European Union and four Latin American countries are preparing for a final push to clinch a controversial free trade deal that has been under discussion for 25 years.
Backed by Germany and Spain, the European Commission is inclined to sign the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement, which would allow the South American countries to export greater quantities of beef, chicken or sugar to Europe without paying customs duties.
However, some EU countries have been blocking the deal, with France leading the resistance. Paris is now trying to convince other European capitals to form a blocking minority – representing at least 35% of the EU’s population – and oppose its adoption.
The EU-Mercosur deal, which would cover Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and the EU’s 27 member states, seeks to establish one of the world’s largest free trade zones, encompassing over 700 million people.
Its primary aim is to lower tariffs and boost trade. Bolivia, a new member of Mercosur, and Venezuela, which has been suspended since 2016, are not included.
Started in 1999 and agreed in principle in 2019 – yet never ratified – the pact continues to be rejected by European farmers concerned by unfair competition and price dumping in favour of South American products.
Critics of the deal also argue that it lacks adequate environmental, social and health standards.
EU imports from Mercosur in figures
The EU is already a major market for Mercosur countries.
According to the Mercosur trade bloc, in 2023, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay exported a total of almost $24 billion worth of agricultural and agri-food products to the EU.
This represents 13.3% of the total exports of these four countries outside Mercosur.
EU statistics agency Eurostat estimates that the four countries accounted for 12.6% of the 27 EU member states’ imports by value in 2023.
France and its farmers mount their opposition
French farmers have long expressed frustration with declining incomes and strict EU environmental regulations and have added the trade accord to their list of grievances.
Earlier this year, farmers blocked motorways in protest at EU and national agricultural and environmental policy, ultimately prompting the government to promise broad support.
French farmers also believe the EU-Mercosur deal would lead to unfair competition with a flood of meat from Argentina and Brazil entering the EU market, without it being subjected to strict EU health and environmental standards.
Less than a year after their unprecedented protests, French farmers took to the streets once more, this time to oppose the accord.
Starting on November 17, ahead of a G20 summit in Brazil, farmers staged protests led by the agricultural union Fédération nationale des syndicats d’exploitants agricoles (FNSEA).
Two days later, farmers backed by the hard-line union Coordination Rurale (CR) set up a roadblock on the A9 motorway, a crucial trade route to the Iberian peninsula, near the southern French border with Spain.
In a rare show of unity, the French political class has backed the widespread opposition to the EU-Mercosur deal.
CR lifted the blockade on the Spanish border after a day, once French Prime Minister Michel Barnier expressed support for their plight.
“Your prime minister knows and respects farmers. I will do everything I can … to uphold the very many commitments that have been made,” the former agriculture minister said.
Macron: France is not alone
French President Emmanuel Macron hammered home his rejection of the agreement “as it stands” at the G20 summit, adding that France was not alone in opposing the accord.
“Contrary to what many people think, France is not isolated and several countries are joining us,” Macron said.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s pro-EU government on Tuesday adopted a resolution opposing the current version of the Mercosur deal.
Tusk said that Warsaw would not accept the free trade deal negotiated by the EU and the Mercosur bloc “in this form,” joining French opposition.
France and Poland jointly account for just under 24% of the EU population, meaning they would have to bring others on board to block the commission’s adoption of the deal.
Within the Italian government, positions on the agreement are divided.
Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida, a close ally of Italian far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, said “the EU-Mercosur treaty in its current form is not acceptable.”
However, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, whose conservative Forza Italia party is also part of Meloni’s governing coalition, was more in favour of agreeing the deal.
Pro-deal countries highlight economic and strategic value
While there is staunch opposition to the trade deal, many EU countries are in favour.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called for the deal to “finally” be sealed after years of negotiations, at last week’s G20 summit in Brazil.
At an EU trade ministers’ meeting in Brussels, Spanish Secretary of State for Trade María Amparo López Senovilla expressed confidence that an upcoming technical round of talks will be the last, and that “substantial progress” can be made by December.
Portuguese Agriculture Minister José Manuel Fernandes has argued that the trade agreement between the EU and Mercosur should help reduce Portugal’s commercial deficit with Brazil.
In Sweden, both the right-wing government and most of the opposition support the EU-Mercosur deal.
Swedish Agriculture Minister Peter Kullgren argues that the deal would benefit the agriculture sector in Europe, by providing more export opportunities.
What’s next for the EU and Mercosur?
EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said last week that negotiations on the trade deal with Mercosur are “progressing,” but he declined to give a timeline to conclude them.
EU negotiators and their Mercosur partners will continue talks to finalize details ahead of a Mercosur summit in Montevideo, Uruguay, on December 5 and 6.
Once the commission has concluded the EU-Mercosur trade talks on behalf of the EU, the deal must still be formally approved by the European Parliament and member states, as well as by the Mercosur partners.
The content of this article is based on reporting by AFP, ANSA, ATA, CTK, dpa, EFE, Europa Press, FENA, HINA, LUSA, PAP, STA, and TT as part of the European Newsroom (enr) project.
