EU to provisionally implement Mercosur trade deal
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has confirmed that the EU will proceed with the provisional application of the controversial Mercosur free trade agreement.
This step was made possible by the ratification of the agreement by at least one of the Mercosur countries. Uruguay and Argentina finalised their procedures on Thursday. Brazil and Paraguay are expected to do so soon.
“I said it before: when they are ready, we are ready,” Von der Leyen said in a statement to the press on Friday, repeating her words from last December’s European summit in Brussels when member states agreed to the deal.
Amid opposition from farmers in several countries, the European Parliament voted to refer the matter to the European Court of Justice on 21 January. This will have to verify whether the agreement complies with European treaties or whether it should be rejected.
The referral suspends the ratification process for up to two years, but the European Commission has the right to provisionally apply the agreement in the meantime.
"I said it before: when they are ready, we are ready"
Concluded after 25 years of negotiations, the EU-Mercosur agreement creates one of the largest free trade areas in the world, accounting for 30 per cent of global GDP and more than 700 million consumers.
It is intended to enable the EU to export more cars, machinery, wines and spirits, while facilitating the entry into Europe of South American beef, poultry, sugar, rice, honey and soya.
Critics say it will disrupt European agriculture with cheaper imported products that may not necessarily comply with EU standards due to insufficient controls. Supporters say it will boost a European economy struggling with Chinese competition and US tariffs.
France and Poland in particular are opposed to the deal, while Belgium abstained in the voting. There have been widespread protests by farmers on the streets of Brussels and elsewhere against the agreement.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen makes a statement on the EU-Mercosur agreement at the European Commission In Brussels, 27 February 2026 © PHOTO SIMON WOHLFAHT / AFP
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