Through diplomatic experiences with Donald Trump in the United States and Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, the European Union (EU) seemed to have forged a form of doctrine which consisted of not signing trade agreements with countries that trample on their climate commitments. . Refusing the granting of new trade preferences to those who refuse to implement the Paris agreement appeared to be essential to align trade policy with climate policy.
Everything therefore suggested that the election of a far-right and climate-sceptical president in Argentina, Javier Milei, in favor of his country’s exit from Mercosur [economic community of countries bringing together Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela], would instantly block discussions for the finalization of the trade agreement between the EU and the Mercosur countries. On the table since 2019, this agreement is already widely criticized due to the anticipated environmental impacts.
This was without taking into account the determination of the Spanish EU and Brazilian Mercosur presidencies, which aimed to achieve success by the end of 2023. The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, did not in fact did not wait to congratulate the new Argentine president in a press release: “The new Argentine government, which takes office in a difficult economic context, can count on the EU to further strengthen our partnership in order to obtain positive results for our societies, in particular by finalizing as soon as possible the negotiations on the EU-Mercosur association agreement. »
This article is originally published on lemonde.fr
