The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyenhighlighted this Sunday the “economic and strategic importance of the agreement between the European Union and Mercosur” in a meeting with the president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silvaon the eve of the G20 meeting on Monday and Tuesday in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.
“We discussed the EU-Mercosur relationship. An agreement of great economic and strategic importance,” said the head of the community Executive in a message on social networks, after meeting with Lula da Silva on the first day of her stay in Brazil.
German politics defended this agreement that has been in negotiations for more than two decades the same day that the French president, Emmanuel Macronhe made clear to his Argentine counterpart, Javier Mileythat his Government will not sign the trade agreement between the EU and Mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) “as it is”, so he asked to renegotiate it to find a framework acceptable to all.
“We do not believe in the agreement as negotiated”Macron said this Sunday in a statement to French media from the Buenos Aires airport before leaving for Rio de Janeiro for the G20 summit.
“We cannot tell French and European farmers to change their practices“, that they stop using certain phytosanitary products (…) and at the same time open our markets to massive imports of products that do not respect the same criteria,” he insisted.
Macron recalled that the EU-Canada trade agreement includes guarantees to prevent the entry into European markets of meat produced with hormones or antibiotics. “We do not have those guarantees today with Mercosur,” he stressed.
The French president said that an agreement is necessary that defines “a good investment framework that opens up some sectors”which would allow collaboration to be developed on issues such as strategic materials, such as lithium.
“But European agriculture should not be sacrificed. That’s what I said. If we are reasonable, there is a possible path, but it will not be done to the detriment of our agriculture,” he stated.
Regarding the objectives of the G20, Von der Leyen thanked Lula for his “leadership.” “The world needed to unite. And you achieved it in Rio,” stressed the president of the European Commission.
“Europe fully supports your Global Alliance against hunger and poverty,” added Von der Leyen, in an endorsement of one of the Brazilian president’s objectives.
The German politician indicated that she was attending the meeting “totally willing to support the ambitions of the Brazilian presidency.”
The goal of the German conservative at this G20 meeting on Monday and Tuesday is to “deepen” the European Union’s global alliances and create new ones at a time when “it matters more than ever.”
The G20 heads of state and government meet this Monday and Tuesday in Rio de Janeiro, amid deep divisions over the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, over the proposal to create a tax on the super-rich, and over the differences to address. a just energy transition.
The Secretary General of the UN, Antonio Guterresasked the G20 leaders this Sunday to “take a step forward” for peace in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Ukraine and Sudan.
(With information from EFE)
