Pressmediaofindia
Related Articles
17-12-2025
PARIS: France has urged the European Union to postpone a vote on a trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur, saying conditions are not yet in place for an agreement.
In a statement from Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu’s office on Sunday, Paris said that EU member states cannot vote on the trade agreement in its current state.
“France asks that the deadlines be pushed back to continue work on getting the legitimate measures of protection for our European agriculture,” the statement added.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is due to visit Brazil on Monday to finalize the landmark trade pact, which the 27-member union has been negotiating with the Mercosur trade bloc for more than 20 years. The agreement is being negotiated with four Mercosur members: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay but the Commission first has to get the approval of the EU member states before signing any trade deal, and Paris has made its objection to the deal with the Mercosur countries clear.
“Given a Mercosur summit is announced for December 20, it is clear in this context that the conditions have not been met for any vote (by states) on authorizing the signing of the agreement,” the statement from Paris said.
Earlier on Sunday, in an interview with the German financial daily Handelsblatt, French Minister of the Economy and Finance Roland Lescure also said that the treaty as it stands, “is simply not acceptable”.
He added that securing robust and effective safeguard clauses was one of the three key conditions France set before giving its blessing to the agreement.
He said the other key points were ensuring that the same production standards that EU farmers face are implemented and proper “import controls” are established.
Farmers in France and some other European countries say the deal will create unfair competition due to less stringent standards, which they fear could destabilize already fragile European food sectors.
“Until we have obtained assurances on these three points, France will not accept the agreement,” said Lescure.
European nations are expected to vote on the trade pact between Tuesday and Friday, according to EU sources.
The European Parliament will also vote on Tuesday on safeguards to reassure farmers, particularly those in France, who are fiercely opposed to the treaty.
The EU is Mercosur’s second-largest trading partner in goods, with exports of 57 billion euros ($67bn) in 2024, according to the European Commission.
The EU is also the biggest foreign investor in Mercosur, with a stock of 390 billion euros ($458bn) in 2023.
If a trade deal is approved later this month, the EU-Mercosur agreement could create a common market of 722 million people.
The European Union and four Mercosur countries Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, reached a political agreement on 6 December 2024 for a ground-breaking partnership agreement.
On 3 September 2025, the European Commission adopted proposals for Council decisions on the signature and conclusion of two parallel legal instruments: the EU-Mercosur Partnership Agreement (EMPA) and the interim Trade Agreement (iTA). The iTA will be repealed and replaced by the EMPA once the latter is fully ratified and enters into force. The EU is Mercosur’s second-largest trading partner in goods, with exports of €57 billion in 2024. The EU accounts for a quarter of total Mercosur trade in services, with EU exports to the region amounting to €29 billion in 2023. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
