EU Member States Back Mercosur Deal as French MEPs Howl

EU member states have given the green light to the signing of the Mercosur agreement, paving the way for a vast trade bloc encompassing more than 700 million people across Europe and Latin America.

France, Poland, Austria, Hungary, and Ireland voted against the deal, while Belgium abstained. (Photo: European Commission)

France, however, plans to continue its fight against the deal in the European Parliament, Peggy Corlin reported for Euronews.

A qualified majority of member states backed the Mercosur agreement, ending more than two decades of difficult negotiations between the European Commission and a group of Latin American countries—Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay—as well as years of internal EU division.

France, Poland, Austria, Hungary, and Ireland voted against the deal, while Belgium abstained, according to diplomats familiar with the matter who spoke to Euronews. The decision is a blow to French efforts to rally a blocking minority.

The backing came after member states adopted a safeguard allowing tighter monitoring of the EU market to prevent serious disruptions from Mercosur imports.