While it was approved last Friday by a majority of EU member states, the European Union’s Mercosur free trade agreement is not yet out of the woods.
Several countries, led by France, remain opposed to the deal, which would create a free-trade area between the EU and Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. They argue it would expose EU farmers to unfair competition because of looser production standards in Latin America – and they are not finished with their efforts to stop it going ahead.
“The signing of the agreement does not mark the end of the story,” French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on X last week, as EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa prepare to sign the deal on Saturday in Latin America.
Paris is determined to take the fight to the European Parliament, where lawmakers could also sink the agreement outright, as EU treaties require Parliament’s consent for the ratification of trade deals.
And some critics of the Mercosur trade deal are even hoping to bring a case against it before the European Court of Justice in order to have it declared illegal.
Going to court
Two parliamentary sources told Euronews that MEPs will vote next Wednesday on a resolution calling on the EU’s top court to assess the deal’s legality.
The draft resolution, first reported by Euronews, was introduced by Green MEPs Majdouline Sbai (France) and Saskia Bricmont (Belgium), alongside Manon Aubry (France) from The Left group. Should the measure be adopted, Parliament could challenge the legality of a “rebalancing mechanism” in the agreement that would allow Mercosur countries to take compensatory measures if future EU laws reduce their exports to Europe.
Such a judicial review would suspend the entire ratification process. For the deal’s opponents, rallying a majority behind a legal challenge may prove easier than blocking it outright.
“It is useful to ask the Court, beyond political dynamics and positions on Mercosur, to ensure that all provisions comply with EU treaties and do not undermine EU’s independence or legislative sovereignty,” said Valérie Hayer, the French MEP who leads the liberal Renew group.
If the Court rules parts of the agreement illegal, negotiations with Mercosur countries would have to restart – even though the Commission has already spent 25 years negotiating the deal.
Nonetheless, the Commission could move to provisionally apply the agreement after it is signed on Saturday.
Supportive countries, among them Germany and Spain, are pushing for swift implementation, even on a provisional basis, ahead of Parliament’s final vote, in an effort to counter US and Chinese influence in Latin America as soon as possible.
But the Commission’s top trade official, Sabine Weyand, told MEPs in emails seen by Euronews that provisional application would not begin before Parliament approves the deal.
“Given the political context, given how sensitive this file is, and the instability of this Parliament, Commission’s president would take a major political risk if she decides on a provisional application,” Hayer added.
Parliament’s final say
With or without provisional application, Parliament must ultimately give its formal consent to the agreement. Should next week’s resolution on a judicial challenge fail, the consent vote could take place between February and May, a parliamentary source said.
MEPs remain deeply divided along national lines. France, Austria, Poland, Hungary and Ireland opposed the deal in last Friday’s member-state vote, while Belgium abstained. One diplomat told Euronews that as few as 15 to 20 MEPs could swing the outcome either way.
In October, 269 lawmakers rejected a paragraph welcoming the conclusion of the Mercosur agreement in a resolution on EU-Latin America strategy, while 259 voted in favour.
Supporters now hope last week’s endorsement by EU governments will help tip the balance in Parliament.
Vincenzo Genovese contributed reporting.