Negotiators for the EU/Mercosur trade agreement met in Brasilia on 3 and 4 October to work on the agreement’s additional instrument on environmental issues, as proposed by the EU. On 14 September, the Commission received the response to this document from the four Mercosur countries (see EUROPE 13251/3).
The last negotiating session was “constructive” and enabled “progress to be made”, according to the European Commission.
For the time being, however, it is more a question of understanding the positions of each party than of reaching agreement on the points that cause irritation.
The additional instrument on the environment, as well as the EU’s new legislation on imported deforestation and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), have put Mercosur’s partners on edge. They are now demanding additional safeguards for access to the European market for their products, according to several sources.
However, the challenge for both parties remains not to reopen the text of the agreement as concluded in 2019.
For further work, the EU and Mercosur have agreed to hold weekly meetings at expert level. As for the chief negotiators, they are due to meet remotely in October, then face-to-face again by early November. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)