The EU suspends the signing of the agreement with Mercosur. Brazil calls on leaders to be courageous and sign

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called on European Union leaders to show courage and sign a free trade agreement with the countries of the South American Mercosur bloc, AFP reported on Sunday. He recalled that negotiations regarding the agreement have been going on for over a quarter of a century.

– Without the political will and courage of leaders, it will not be possible to end negotiations that have been dragging on for 26 years, said Lula, speaking on Saturday at the summit of South American countries in the Brazilian city of Foz do Iguacu. He said that on Friday he received a letter from the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in which she expressed hope that the agreement would be approved in January.

As AFP reported, initially the Mercosur countries, as well as the head of the European Commission and most EU countries, were counting on the formal conclusion of the agreement on Saturday. However, at the EU summit in Brussels on Thursday, it was decided not to sign it this year. According to EU sources, the President of the European Commission informed the heads of state and government that the conclusion of the agreement would be postponed until January. According to AFP, it is January 12.

On Thursday, demonstrations by farmers from various European countries, including Poland, Italy and France, rolled through Brussels. Farmers protested, among others: against the agreement with Mercosur for fear that the introduction of preferential tariffs on some agricultural products from Mercosur will affect them.

AFP recalled that French President Emmanuel Macron considered it “too early” to say whether he would accept the signing of the agreement next month. Commenting on this statement, the Brazilian president said that he had known France's attitude before and “it was not new.”

Referring to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's words that signing the agreement on Saturday would be “premature”, Lula revealed that the politician assured him in a telephone conversation that she would be ready to accept the agreement in January.

He added that von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa assured him that “France alone cannot block the signing of the agreement.”

The agreement with the Mercosur bloc of countries, which includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia and Uruguay, will establish tariff preferences for certain agricultural products from these countries, such as beef, poultry, dairy, sugar and ethanol. In return, the markets of these countries will be opened to European industry. (PAP)

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