MNI: Trump Tensions Quell EU Resistance To Mercosur Deal

The European Union’s trade agreement with the Mercosur bloc looks likely to be approved by both member states and the European Parliament, as dissatisfaction with a deal struck with the U.S. fuels support for a counter-balancing arrangement with South America , EU trade sources told MNI.

When European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signed the deal at the end of last year, she highlighted concessions including maximum quotas for exports of South American beef and poultry, and these appear to have eased some concerns among the EU’s farm interests, despite continued opposition from strong agricultural lobbies in Poland and Belgium and particularly in France, the officials said.

"The French are very unhappy," said one source who is closely following the deal, but he added that qualified majority voting means that only 15 out of 27 member states, comprising at least 65% of the Union’s population, need to back the deal for approval by the European Council. 

As a result, the Mercosur deal is likely to add to the domestic political misery of French President Emmanuel Macron ahead of his government’s Sept 8 confidence vote, the source observed. 

"It's never going to be a good time for France,” the source added. (See MNI: French Austerity Plan To Largely Survive Crisis-Officials)

Italy, which in the past has dithered on whether to back the deal, now looks likely to do so, another source said.

PARLIAMENT COMING ROUND TO DEAL

Opposition is also fading in the European Parliament, sources said, where the single biggest group, the centre-right European People’s Party, has already signalled support.

"I think Trump tensions will give Mercosur an easier time in the parliament," one official said. 

The Commission is due to approve the agreement’s text on Wednesday after which it will be submitted to the Council and the European Parliament for approval, although the timeline for its finalisation remains dependent on the calendar of the legislature. 

"It really depends on the EP calendar, Council tends to go quicker,” one official said.