Photo of the last summit of Mercosur (AP Photo/Matilde Campodonico/File)

negotiators of Mercosur and the European Union (EU) agreed this Wednesday in Buenos Aires intensify conversations this semester in order to achieve a final free trade agreement between the bloc made up of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay and the Twenty-Seven.

As stated in a joint statement by the chief negotiators of the Mercosur-EU agreement, during meetings held this Tuesday and Wednesday in Buenos Aires a work plan has been drawn up for the semester with a view to intensifying the negotiations.

After two decades of arduous talks, in 2019 the EU and the South American bloc reached a general political agreement to seal a free trade pact, leaving some technical aspects awaiting resolution.

But this discussion it got complicated by the appearance of renewed demands, mainly from the European side, concerning environmental problemsin particular, the criticism of the policy of the Brazilian President’s government Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2022) and which have been maintained after the recent return of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in power.

The reluctance of certain countries with a powerful agricultural sector, such as France, is in order. Pictured is Emmanuel Macron, French President (REUTERS/Yves Herman/File)
The reluctance of certain countries with a powerful agricultural sector, such as France, is in order. Pictured is Emmanuel Macron, French President (REUTERS/Yves Herman/File)

are also in effect the reluctance of some countries with a powerful agricultural sector, such as Francewho do not want to open their markets to competitive agricultural products from the South American bloc.

According to the press release, the talks in Buenos Aires “revolved around the three dimensions of sustainable development (economic, social and environmental) as a framework for deepening the biregional association”.

“Faced with the new global political and economic scenario, aware of the strategic importance of the bi-regional relationship, Both delegations agreed on the importance of intensifying the dialogue reach a mutually beneficial and balanced agreement,” the statement added.

The four national coordinators of the South American bloc and the chief negotiators of the foreign service and the general directorate of trade of the European Union took part in the talks in the capital of Argentina, the country which chairs Mercosur this semester.

(With information from EFE)

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