At the end of the Italian-German intergovernmental summit in Rome, the Prime Minister said: – Italy has done work to make this agreement more balanced.
Italy was initially against the EU agreement with the Mercosur bloc, which consists of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. The government in Rome demanded greater guarantees for domestic agriculture.
What guarantees has Italy obtained for agriculture?
Who is the Prime Minister of Italy?
Which countries form the Mercosur bloc?
What did Urszula von der Leyen say about the contract?
Ultimately, the Meloni government supported the agreement after it obtained strengthened safeguard clauses for sensitive agricultural sectors that were intended to protect Italian producers against excessive competition from South America. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani later said that it was a success for the Italian government.
The EU court will examine objections to the Mercosur agreement
The EU-Mercosur agreement was concluded by the Commission on January 17 at a summit in the Paraguayan capital, Asuncion. Previously, EU countries had given their consent to its conclusion, with the opposition of Poland, France, Austria, Ireland and Hungary.
On Wednesday, the European Parliament voted in favor of referring the trade agreement between the EU and Mercosur countries to the Court of Justice of the EU to check the agreement's compliance with EU treaties.
The agreement will introduce customs preferences for producers of certain agricultural products from Mercosur countries. According to the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the agreement may bring the European automotive sector an increase in exports by up to EUR 20 billion, or 200%.
