While farmers continue their mobilization throughout France, deputies voted this Tuesday, November 26, against the free trade treaty between the EU and Mercosur countries, following a debate at the National Assembly. This is a refusal “as it stands” of this agreement considered to be harmful to French agriculture.
By 484 votes to 70, the deputies approved, through a non-binding vote, the government’s position in these negotiations. This result is “a democratic mandate strengthening our legitimacy to defend the voice of ‘no’ before the Commission and the European Council”, had underlined in advance the Minister Delegate in charge of Foreign Trade, Sophie Primas.
A struggle for influence within the EU
“Under current conditions”, this draft agreement between the EU and Mercosur countries does not guarantee “fair conditions of competition for our farmers”, declared Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard before the vote. However, it would be “irresponsible for France to oppose any free trade agreement in advance and in principle”, launched the former vice-president of the National Assembly.
France hopes to rally other European countries to achieve a blocking minority within the EU Council, which brings together the 27, and whose agreement is necessary once the negotiations are completed. France is in any case no longer alone in its refusal: “the Polish Council of Ministers has decided to vote against”, welcomed Annie Genevard, an announcement confirmed by Warsaw. A good part of the left and the RN, however, fear that this opposition from the executive to the treaty, only as it stands and not definitively, will not be sufficient.
Farmers in France have relaunched their mobilization, less than a year after a historic revolt, to protest in particular against the free trade agreement with Mercosur that the European Commission, pushed by countries like Germany and Spain , seems determined to sign before the end of the year.
In their eyes, this text would lead to unfair competition, notably with a surge of Argentinian or Brazilian meat not subject to the strict health and environmental standards of the European Union. President Emmanuel Macron constantly insisted, throughout a tour of South America, that he refused the agreement “as it stands”.