The EU will apply the Mercosur agreement provisionally

The European Union (EU) will provisionally apply a controversial agreement with the South American Mercosur bloc. This was announced on Friday by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, cited by „Reuters“.

The aim is to secure a competitive advantage. The European Commission's agreement with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay follows 25 years of negotiations. It is the EU's biggest trade deal when it comes to tariff reductions.

Argentina and Uruguay ratified the agreement on Thursday. The agreement is highly controversial in the EU. Supporters of the agreement, such as Germany and Spain, see it as a necessary measure to compensate for losses due to US tariffs and to reduce dependence on China for critical raw materials. Meanwhile, opponents, led by France, fear a wave of cheap imports of beef, sugar and poultry. This would increase pressure on local farmers, who have repeatedly protested against the agreement.

The European Parliament voted in January to refer the trade agreement with the South American trading bloc Mercosur to the EU's highest court for evaluation.