As talks resume against the backdrop of announcements of the imminent conclusion of trade negotiations between the European Union and Mercosur, the South American common market, some Member States and stakeholders recall their concerns on agricultural and environmental issues.
"The chief negotiators of the European Union and Mercosur will meet in Brussels at the end of this week", announced a European Commission spokesman on Wednesday 19 June. They will discuss "the main outstanding issues, including some key EU requests", he said.
The outcome of this meeting will determine the convening of a round of negotiations at ministerial level on Wednesday 26 and Thursday 27 June, according to a source close to the talks.
The European Commission took the opportunity to welcome the "political commitment" of the South American bloc in recent days and weeks, stressing that it "shares this political commitment", while recognising that "there is still work to be done".
Indeed, while, after twenty years of talks, some of the EU's key demands seem well on the way to being heard by Mercosur, the challenge now is to temper the South American bloc's expectations in terms of opening up the European agricultural market.
Agriculture under "unrealistic" expectations
These were the words of the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Phil Hogan, who spoke the day before in Luxembourg on the state of play of these talks. Recalling that the EU is, in these negotiations, "on the defensive in agriculture and on the offensive on industrial goods", Mr Hogan acknowledged that it was therefore a question of "finding common ground with the 'Mercosurians' to get them to moderate their expectations on agriculture". If the industrial offer does indeed seem attractive to Europeans, "of course we have pressures on us in relation for the agriculture to pay" for openings to industrial products, admitted the Irish Commissioner.
However, Mr Hogan considered that the requests made by the Mercosur countries "are not reflecting the sensitivities" of the EU, in particular on the issues of beef, sugar, ethanol and poultry quotas. According to him, "The type of numbers that are being sought by Mercosur countries and volumes in terms of their expectations is completely unrealistic in terms of what the EU can agree to".
Other issues are still outstanding, the Commissioner added, such as "some iconic names" of geographical indications, but also safeguard mechanisms, the environment and standards.
Rise to the front of four states
Moreover, throughout these negotiations, it is the agricultural sector that has made its voice heard the most. In recent weeks, it has once again given voice, both to EU agricultural organisations and cooperatives (Copa-Cogeca) (see EUROPE 12262/8) and to European agriculture ministers (see EUROPE 12255/21).
Finally, on Tuesday 17 June, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, French President Emmanuel Macron, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel also voiced the concerns of the agri-food sector. In a letter to the President of the Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, they express their "deep concern" about the possible allocation of an increased quota for South American beef producers - the figure of 99,000 tonnes is circulating - but also about the countries' compliance with animal welfare, sanitary, phytosanitary and environmental standards.
Meeting climate commitments
Another major stumbling block is the issue of respect for the environment and climate, particularly by Brazil under President Jair Bolsonaro (see EUROPE 12150/17, 12177/11). Several European chancelleries, led by Paris, have warned that no global agreement could be envisaged without clear provisions on the South American bloc's compliance with the Paris Agreement.
While the European Commission has committed itself to ensuring that the trade and sustainable development chapter of the agreement ensures that the free trade agreement is not developed at the expense of the environment (see EUROPE 12215/6), civil society remains sceptical. In an open letter, published on Tuesday 18 June, more than 340 NGOs called for the suspension of talks due to the deterioration of human rights and environmental conditions in Brazil.
To read the Member States' letter: https://bit.ly/2RnfsXe (Original version in French by Hermine Donceel)