The Council of the European Union (EU), in which the governments of the 27 Member States are represented, officially approved this Friday afternoon (9), by majority vote, the association agreement with Mercosur.
The signing of the treaty is expected to take place in the coming days in Paraguay, where the bloc will be represented by the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
Earlier this Friday, ambassadors from the 27 EU member states had already signaled their provisional position on the free trade pact.
“After more than 25 years, today’s decisions mark a historic step towards strengthening the EU’s strategic partnership with Mercosur,” said in a statement the Minister of Energy, Trade and Industry, Michael Damianos, whose country, Cyprus, holds the rotating presidency of the Council.
Specifically, Member States voted in favor of signing the interim trade agreement with Mercosur (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay), which falls under the exclusive competence of the EU and does not require ratification by national parliaments, as well as in favor of signing the final agreement, which will require subsequent approval from all parties.
France and Hungary had already announced that they would vote against, while countries such as Belgium abstained. Italy provided decisive support, having requested more time in December to address its farmers’ concerns about the agreement, which was strongly defended by Spain and Germany.
To ensure the necessary support among Member States, the ambassadors also approved this Friday the political agreement reached with the European Parliament in December on safeguard clauses for EU farmers, who vehemently opposed the agreement with Mercosur.
These measures aim to allow the EU to react quickly to market disruptions caused by increased agricultural imports from Mercosur.
For products considered “sensitive”, the rules will apply when imported goods are at least 5% cheaper than comparable European goods, coupled with a 5% increase in preferential import volumes relative to the three-year average, or a 5% drop in import prices. This will generally be considered sufficient reason to initiate an investigation.
Now, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will have the mandate to sign the agreement on behalf of the EU — something she could do in Paraguay next Monday or Tuesday, according to diplomatic sources — and the European Parliament also needs to give its consent.
