On Friday 10 November, Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström welcomed strong support from the Council of the EU to lead EU-Mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) free-trade talks on which she hopes agreement in principle can be reached by the end of the year.
Malmstrom said there was a realistic possibility of an agreement by the end of the year, with a unique opportunity to reach a political agreement with Mercosur ahead of the general elections in Brazil in October 2018.
“We are sensitive to sensitivities, but we must not lose the big picture,” said the Commissioner.
Beef, ethanol, poultry, sugar and honey are sensitive products, which twelve countries of the Council, headed by France, are calling to be properly taken into account.
A French diplomatic source said that they didn’t want to block or precipitate the talks.
We pointed out that France wants an ambitious agreement but a balanced one and was particularly keen on the sensitivities of a number of sectors being taken into account, French secretary of state for trade, Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, told this newsletter, assuring us that ambition should not be abandoned.
A negotiating meeting was held in Brasilia this week, from 6 to 10 November.
After the previous negotiating meeting in early October, the parties pledged to agree in principle by the end of 2017, despite revised offerings in October that both parties felt were inadequate (see EUROPE 11880).
A final exchange of offers still needs to take place but we have pledged to finalise this agreement, said Malmström on Friday. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)