VALENCIA, Spain (Reuters) – Disagreements remain between France and Spain over the conclusion of a free trade agreement between the EU and Mercosur, according to representatives of the two states, while the establishment of this long-delayed pact is among the priorities of the meeting of European trade ministers in Spain on Friday.
Madrid considers that the conclusion of the agreement with the South American Mercosur countries (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay), after 20 years of negotiations, is a “priority objective” for the European Union. Spain holds the rotating presidency of the Union until the end of the year.
“We have reached the decision-making stage,” said Spanish Trade Minister Hector Gomez, interviewed by Reuters on the eve of the meeting.
France, historically reluctant towards free trade agreements, wants to continue talks and not rush the negotiations.
In front of the press on Friday, French Minister of Commerce Olivier Becht considered that it was important to take “the necessary time”, in particular to obtain guarantees in terms of environmental standards.
The deal has been on hold since 2019, largely due to European concerns over Amazon deforestation and Mercosur’s slow response to an EU addendum offering environmental safeguards.
“The negotiations are weekly (…) the dialogue is permanent”, according to Hector Gomez, who sees favorably the fact that the main text of the treaty has not been reopened for revision and that only the instrument so-called “additional” be discussed.
The European Union has been waiting since March for Mercosur’s response to its commitments on sustainability and climate change. Mercosur ultimately presented a one-page counterproposal that served as the basis for discussions at recent in-person meetings in Brasilia.
(Reporting by Belén Carreño, French version Victor Goury-Laffont, editing by Blandine Hénault)
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