France may ratify the Free trade agreement between the European Union (EU) and Mercosur whether it is “fair” in terms of reciprocity of environmental standards, said the French Minister of Agriculture, Marc Fesneau.
“We need fair trade agreements”Fesneau said at the conference of the French federation of bovine meat producers, held in Metz, in eastern France, select AFP.
“So far, we have said that the agreement was not acceptable. That does not mean that there will not be an agreement one day with Mercosur.”he added, in addition to reiterating that France does not plan to ratify it “in its current state.”
For the European Union, the agreement with Mercosur must be made “now or never”
After more than 20 years of negotiations, the agreement that was closed in 2019 between the EU and the four Mercosur countries (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay) it was not ratified due to concerns that the environmental policies of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro aroused in Europe, the agency affirms.
new airs
The tone has changed after the coming to power in Brazil of the leftist president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
According to AFP, French farmers, and especially cattle breeders, They fear that with the agreement, more South American agricultural products subject to less demanding production standards will enter the European market.
LM
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