European Commission hopes to sign Mercosur trade deal 'soon'
The European Commission sees "progress" in negotiations to sign the free trade agreement with the Latin American trade bloc Mercosur, Commission president Ursula von der Leyen’s spokesperson said on Monday.
"I can confirm that discussions have taken place over the past two weeks and that progress has been made," the spokesperson said at the Commission’s daily press briefing. While she declined to confirm a date, she said they were "on the right track" to sign the deal "hopefully soon".
Von der Leyen had planned to travel to Brazil late last year to sign the agreement with Mercosur members Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. However, she was forced to cancel the trip after encountering a blocking minority led by France and Italy at the European Council summit on 18 December in Brussels.
According to Bloomberg, Italy may now be close to changing its position and backing the agreement when EU ambassadors return to the issue on 9 January. The country has called for additional safeguards for agriculture, as well as guarantees of funding for farmers in the next EU budget cycle, sources say. The Italian government declined to comment.
Agriculture meeting in Brussels
EU agriculture ministers will meet in Brussels on Wednesday for informal talks organised by the Commission and the Cypriot EU presidency. The meeting follows farmers’ protests that took place on the sidelines of the December summit, which were partly directed against the Mercosur agreement.
Negotiated over a period of 25 years, the Mercosur agreement would create the world’s largest free trade area. It could open new markets for European industries such as car manufacturing, but farmers in several EU countries warn of unfair competition, particularly for products like beef.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen © PHOTO JOHN THYS / AFP
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