To complete the free trade agreement with the South American alliance Mercosur Representatives of EU countries and the European Parliament agreed on additional safeguard clauses for agriculture. In the event of a harmful increase in imports from the Mercosur countries or an excessive fall in prices for EU producers, countermeasures should be able to be taken quickly. These would lead to tariff advantages being temporarily suspended again, as the current Danish EU Council Presidency announced on the evening after the negotiations in Strasbourg.
The agreement stipulates that an investigation will be initiated if import volumes increase by more than eight percent per year. Particularly intensive monitoring is planned for imports of products such as beef, poultry, rice, honey, eggs, garlic, ethanol, citrus fruits and sugar. There should also be a report on the effects of imports from the Mercosur countries Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay at least every six months.
Proponents of the agreement hope that the new safeguards can help facilitate the signing of the agreement scheduled for next Saturday in Brazil. At least 15 of the 27 EU states must first agree to this in the Council of Member States. There is also the hurdle that together they also represent at least 65 percent of the total population EU have to make out.
Brazil threatens to withdraw
It was unclear until recently whether the necessary majority would be achieved. If France does not agree, as expected, it will probably come down to Italy. Countries such as Poland and Austria have already announced that they will vote against signing the agreement due to concerns from farmers and citizens. A decision is expected on the sidelines of the EU summit starting this Thursday.
Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva threatened on Wednesday that his country would withdraw in the event of failure from the planned deal. This should have been negotiated since 1999 Free trade agreement If it is not approved by EU countries in time for the planned signing on Saturday, Brazil will no longer support it, said the left-wing head of state of Latin America’s largest economy.
“I have already warned you: If we don’t do it now, Brazil will not make a deal as long as I am president,” Lula said at a government meeting, as seen on television. Brazil waited 26 years for the agreement.
Agreement is intended to send a signal against Donald Trump’s protectionism
According to the EU Commission, the new free trade zone with more than 700 million inhabitants would be the largest of its kind in the world and is also intended to send a signal against US President Donald Trump’s protectionist customs policy. The plan is to largely reduce tariffs and trade barriers between the EU and the Mercosur states. Critics of the plans fear that European farmers could be forced into a price war and that rainforest destruction in South America will be fueled.
The agreement reached by the negotiators must now be formally adopted by Parliament and the Council before the safeguard clause regulation can come into force. However, this is considered a formality. The SPD trade politician Bernd Lange said: “Open trade and strong Protection for European agriculture “The agreement is a good compromise in the interests of security and predictability for European agriculture, which at the same time does not endanger the trusting cooperation with the Mercosur states.
