The contract with Mercosur has been suspended. The dam was built by the farmers themselves and the hard core of Poland and France
On Friday, on the eve of the originally planned signing of the EU agreement with the Mercosur bloc, we received information that the signing of the agreement with Mercosur was suspended – the Ministry of Agriculture announced in a press release.
“A hard NO to the agreement with Mercosur consistently maintained by the governments of Poland and France, the determination of the group of MEPs led by Krzysztof Hetman and Dariusz Joński, but also the diplomatic offensive of Italy and the uncompromising fight of thousands of farmers from 27 EU countries. All this together or each action separately was part of the pressure that could not be ignored. Today, on the eve of the originally planned signing of the agreement with the bloc Mercosur, we have information that the agreement with Mercosur is suspended,” the Ministry of Agriculture wrote in a press release.
He added that the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, informed the leaders of the countries participating in the EU summit that the votes on the EU-Mercosur agreement had been postponed.
“Suspending the agreement with Mercosur for the next few weeks changes a lot; on the one hand, we have time for further negotiations and persuading arguments that allow us to build a blocking minority, to which we consistently call on the governments of the member states. But on the other hand, if there are no more willing parties, we will do everything to ensure the safety of Polish and European farmers as much as possible,” said Minister Stefan Krajewski, quoted in the ministry's information. (PAP Business)
Media: Paused, but not for long
The European Union plans to sign a trade agreement with the Mercosur bloc on January 12, ANSA and AFP reported on Friday, citing EU sources. Italy and France are among the countries that have raised objections to the agreement with the South American economic organization, which brings together Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.
As ANSA noted, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at the end of the EU summit in Brussels that she believed there would be a sufficient majority among the 27 countries to approve an agreement with further guarantees.
Such guarantees for the agricultural sector were requested by, among others, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
On Wednesday, the head of government said in the parliament in Rome: – We need to wait until the package of additional steps to protect our agricultural sector is finalized and then illustrated and discussed with our farmers.
– This does not mean that Italy intends to block or oppose, but only wants to approve the agreement if it includes mutual guarantees for our agricultural sector – she explained.
– I very much trust that at the beginning of the new year all these conditions will be met – Meloni declared. (PAP)
Krajewski: We have more time to build a minority
The suspension of the EU-Mercosur agreement gives time for further negotiations and building a blocking minority – commented on Friday the Minister of Agriculture, Stefan Krajewski, on its suspension on the eve of the planned signing.
“Suspending the agreement with Mercosur for the next few weeks changes a lot. On the one hand, it gives time for further negotiations and building a blocking minority, which we consistently call for. On the other hand, if there are no other interested parties, we will do everything to ensure the safety of Polish and European farmers as much as possible,” said the minister, quoted in the statement.
The head of the Ministry of Agriculture emphasized that there is no consent to double standards consisting in tightening requirements for EU farmers while allowing the import of products from third countries with lower quality standards. In his opinion, the recent farmers' protests in Brussels showed the scale of opposition to the agreement.
Just a day earlier, the ministers of agriculture of Poland and France coordinated activities before the planned debate in COREPER, i.e. the committee of permanent representatives of EU member states, but the topic of Mercosur was not on the current agenda of the meeting.
Minister Krajewski also appealed to the governments of, among others, Italy, Austria, the Netherlands, Ireland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania and Greece to join the blocking minority.
“The safety of the Polish countryside and the protection of our farmers is crucial for my ministry; I understand the arguments of other ministries, but we must focus on what ensures food security in Poland and throughout Europe. Maybe it is worth thinking about it for a moment during Christmas meetings at the table,” said the head of the Ministry of Agriculture.
The agreement with the Mercosur bloc of countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay) will establish tariff preferences for certain agricultural products from these countries, such as beef, poultry, dairy, sugar and ethanol. The final text of the regulation will be agreed in the EP's negotiations with the Member States. Countries are waiting for the protection clause before the final vote on the entire trade agreement with Mercosur. (PAP)
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