EU-Mercosur deal adds more and more resistance

PARIS.- The agreement between the Mercosur and the European Union (EU) it seems more and more committed as more countries join it to prevent its ratification. Brussels, which does not want to jeopardize a position it considers “strategic” in the South American region, met yesterday – with mixed success – the representatives of the 27 countries of the bloc to seek possible solutions.

Directed by France Yes Austria, countries reluctant to the pact announced their opposition several months ago, arguing above all that the agreement violates the EU’s climate objectives.

After the official warning issued by French Agriculture Minister Franck Riester in February, this week was the Austrian government the one who, in a stern missive, warned Portugal – which holds the rotating presidency of the EU – to avoid “any maneuver” to facilitate the vote on the text.

“I ask you to ensure that the vote on the European Union-Mercosur trade agreement can take place in a transparent manner, without political maneuvering and with the full attention of the public,” wrote the vice-chancellor for the environment , Werner Kogler, to the Portuguese Prime Minister, Antonio Costa.

Kogler thus denounced “possible attempts” by Brussels to move forward, despite the reluctance of several member states, for example by attaching a protocol to the treaty or by splitting it to facilitate the approval of the trade chapter, which would therefore only be ratified by the European Parliament.

“This is not acceptable,” insists the vice-chancellor in his letter. “For us, the impact of the agreement on the climate crisis is a decisive factor,” he concludes.

The Austrian parliament unanimously rejected the text in its current form, which had been signed in the summer of 2019 between the EU and the four member countries of Mercosur, after 20 years of negotiations.

Since that day, the deal has drawn criticism from farmers across Europe, particularly concerned about meat production, and climate-conscious NGOs.

According to diplomatic sources in Brussels, during the meeting yesterday The Netherlands, Ireland and Belgium also expressed concerns., which the authorities of the Walloon region had already spoken out against.

In August 2019, the French president Emmanuel Macron, citing “an industrialized deforestation process” in the Amazon rainforest, he accused his Brazilian counterpart, Jair Bolsonaro “Not to respect their climate commitments.” Macron then let it be known that France “was opposed to the Mercosur agreement in its current state”.

Ratification of the agreement with Mercosur was, in any case, one of the priorities set by Portugal for its presidency. for the time being six months. The same is true for Spain and even for Germany, despite the fact that the Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed doubts about Brazil’s climate commitments.

For the European Commission (EC), chaired by the German Ursula von der Leyen, a delay in the ratification of the pact would leave the doors open to China –Russia The Britain– to occupy the space left free by European products.

Brussels says increased South American meat exports to Europe under the deal would amount to just two weeks of sales to China.

“We are overwhelmed by the Asian economy. And I can clearly say that China doesn’t worry about climate or labor issues»Says Ruppert Schegelmilch, Commercial Director of the European Commission.

For Schegelmilch, the agreement must be considered “strategic”. “If we don’t take this opportunity, others will,” he concludes. Brussels also believes that Brazil will be more disciplined in the climate field in agreement with Mercosur than outside.

But these arguments do not seem sufficient for a large part of the countries of the bloc which, combining protectionist interests, environmental considerations and, above all, political reasons, refuse to ratify the agreement. Last week, a hearing in the European Parliament revealed the extent of resistance Brazil – and in particular Bolsonaro – is arousing in the European political arena.

The EC then presented the option for the EU and the Brazilian government to negotiate an additional environmental commitment convince European governments to ratify the agreement. The idea was not successful, however. The 27 claim that the bloc does not have the capacity to uphold the promises made by Brazil in the environmental field or to control the origin of Amazonian products.

Socialist deputy Immaculate Rodríguez-Piñero, member of the trade committee, believes, however, that the 27 should give impetus to ratification this semester. “It can be accompanied by more guarantees on improving sustainability, deforestation, indigenous peoples’ rights and labor commitments. But it is an important agreement for the EU and for Mercosur, because it contributes to their integration, ”he said in statements to the newspaper. The country.

All these efforts could be useless, however, if the European political calendar is taken into account. Imminent elections in the Netherlands, regional elections in France in June and federal elections in Germany in September. Finally, the French presidential elections of May 2022, with an Emmanuel Macron caught between the advance of the Greens and a furiously protectionist far right.