Macron unwilling to sign Mercosur trade deal if Brazil withdraws from climate agreement

On Thursday, June 27, French President Emmanuel Macron said he would not sign any trade deal with Brazil if President Jair Bolsonaro withdraws from the Paris Agreement, threatening to put an end to negotiations between the European Union and Mercosur.

The EU’s talks with Mercosur, the world’s fourth largest trading bloc, have intensified, with Bolsonaro saying earlier this month that an agreement could be signed “soon” while the EU called it a “number one priority.”

However, the EU’s nerves about a wave of beef imports and Mercosur’s hesitation about opening up some industrial sectors, such as cars, have led to a halt in negotiations. An agreement may be close but still out of reach.

France is particularly concerned about the impact of South American imports on its vast agricultural industry because those imports would not have to respect the EU’s stringent environmental regulations.

“As far as we are concerned, we will not be able to sign a trade agreement with Brazil if it leaves the Paris Agreement,” Macron told reporters in Japan before a G20 meeting.

“For a simple reason. We are asking our farmers to stop using pesticides, we are asking our companies to produce less carbon, which has a cost of competitiveness,” he said.

“So we won’t suddenly allow goods to enter from countries that do not respect any of this,” he added.

Earlier this year, France voted against opening trade negotiations between the EU and the United States because of Washington’s decision to waive the Paris Agreement.

However, France did not prevent the opening of trade negotiations because the necessary majority of the EU countries supported it. It is unclear whether France would be able to mobilize other EU countries if it voted against an agreement with Mercosur.

Source: Reuters

Sharing is caring!