Between the counterproposal made by the Latin American bloc against the environmental demands of Europe and the upcoming inauguration of Javier Milei in Argentina, is a new scenario opening up?
The vice president of the European Commission, Vladis Dombrovskis warned about the difficulties that still exist in closing the Mercosur-European Union (EU) agreement: on the one hand, some requests from Latin American countries will be “difficult to address” in the trade agreement; and, on the other hand, uncertainty is growing about how the assumption of Javier Milei in Argentina could affect ongoing negotiations.
There are only a few days left until the deadline set by the president of Paraguay Santiago Pena to, at least, begin the final process of closing and signing the Mercosur-EU agreement. The passing of the days is also key because it will be this president who will assume the pro tempore presidency of the regional bloc on December 6 — changing, surely, the line headed by Brazil in command of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva—, while the Spanish president Pedro Sanchez —a great promoter of the agreement— must also step aside from the leadership position of the European Union.
In this context, Dombrovskis explained during his speech in the commission of European Parliament International Trade that, since Brussels presented its proposal on trade and sustainable development in March – an “essential” part of the trade agreement – the countries of the Mercosur They have “used this occasion to raise issues from their side.”
By this he refers to the environmental demands that the Europeans included in the conditions of commercial exchange, against which the countries of the region made the counterproposal of increasing export quotas to the EU or reducing the quotas of European products sold in Mercosur.
“We are trying to minimize those conversations so as not to end up with a broader initial agreement because in this case I would say that the options for concluding it become scarcer,” warned the European Trade Minister.
In any case, and while the deadlines become increasingly tight, Dombrovskis assured that Brussels is “committed” to working to conclude the agreement, which they hope will arrive before the end of the year: “We are immersed in an intense calendar of negotiations with the objective of concluding quickly,” he noted.
Milei, an unknown but with positive signs
On the other hand, and in response to the questions from the MEPs – who brought to the session proposals that had already been made -, Dombrovskis stressed that the consequences of Javier Milei’s electoral victory in Argentina on the trade agreement “remains to be seen”, and that the European Comission still works with the outgoing government.
Even so, he assured that the “first signs” of the new administration “they seem to be positive” and considered it “helpful” to have an additional sustainability instrument in the annex, since it provides a “commitment platform” for the countries of the Mercosur. In this same sense, the president thinks Luis Lacalle Pouwho asked for patience for the Argentine president-elect, and a vote of confidence to see if he complies with the things he said during the campaign regarding the regional bloc.
“I think we have a unique opportunity to finally move forward with the agreement,” Dombrovskis said.
Source: Ambito
