Brussels approves free-trade deal with Mercosur bloc
The EU Commission has initiated the ratification process for its free trade agreement with the South American Mercosur states. The deal has been under negotiation since 1999. New safeguard clauses for agricultural products have been introduced to overcome any remaining opposition before the deal is put to vote at the national and European level. If it comes into force, the agreement will create one of the largest free-trade zones in the world.
Similar values and interests
El País is delighted at the prospect of a pact with a kindred continent:
“The progress regarding Mercosur is excellent news. The deal marks the most comprehensive agreement in the history of the EU: a common market encompassing 780 million people, an expected 40 percent increase in trade and estimated annual savings of 4 billion euros in customs duties for Europeans. ... This is the Commission's greatest achievement in Ursula von der Leyen's second mandate. ... The agreement provides the basis for a network of relations with Latin America, the region of the world which is most similar to Europe in terms of values and interests.”
Big industry has better arguments
Despite the disadvantages for the agricultural sector, Der Standard says the deal will have positive effects in terms of preserving prosperity:
“The pressure on the many small domestic farmers who are already contending with far greater competition from other countries on many products certainly won't decrease. But big industry simply has the better arguments in the current difficult situation. It offers many people well-paid jobs and is researching new technologies and products. All this urgently needs to be stepped up. Agreements with other parts of the world represent an opportunity if our aim is to maintain prosperity.”
Double loss of influence for Paris
The deal is an expression of the growing weakness of Europe and France, Le Monde concludes:
“Although they come late, the concessions [made by the EU Commission] are welcome. But there is nothing to suggest that they will be enough to assuage the anger of [French] farmers and overcome the discontent over a deal that reflects a double loss of influence. The EU is no longer in a position to impose its standards unconditionally on its trade partners and dictate how they should produce. ... And France is increasingly realising that it will find it more and more difficult to influence European decisions in the face of budgetary incapacity and political instability.”
A fairly negotiated win-win deal
At last things are taking a turn for the better in international relations, La Croix comments in delight:
“In most countries, international trade serves to secure sources of growth. This is also true for France, which nevertheless vehemently opposed the agreement with Mercosur. Paris defended those sectors of the agricultural and food industry that will undoubtedly be negatively impacted once it comes into force. Other sectors, however, will benefit from it. In a world where predatory powers seek to impose their interests unilaterally, the EU-Mercosur agreement shows that it is possible to negotiate beneficial terms while at the same time defending one's principles. That is indeed encouraging.”
Strategic manoeuvering between Berlin and Paris
Europe is still at odds over the free trade agreement, writes Polityka:
“Farmers' fears of competition from cheaper Latin American beef, poultry and sugar are the main reason behind the reluctance of France, Italy, Poland and Austria to sign the document. ... Convincing France, the EU's second-largest economy, to consent to Mercosur will be the toughest challenge for Brussels. Germany is very keen to liberalise trade with Latin America (according to the motto 'Latin beef in exchange for German cars'), but at the same time Berlin doesn't want to overrule Paris on this issue.”
Get to work on Asia now
This agreement must not be the end of the story, Handelsblatt insists:
“The political momentum is there - now the EU Commission and EU states must make the most of it to reach new deals, particularly with India, one of the key strategic partners of the coming decades. ... Equally crucial is progress with the dynamic economies of Southeast Asia: Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand. The EU has been negotiating with all these countries for years - but it can't afford another 26 years of negotiations. Europe must not waste any more time now. The ratification of Mercosur would be a breakthrough, but India and Southeast Asia will be the real test of whether the EU can offer a genuine alternative to Donald Trump's protectionism.”