Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie demanded on Monday (16.09.2019) that environmental and trade issues not be mixed in the process of ratifying the agreement between the European Union (EU) and Mercosur, which will create, when it comes into force, a market of 780 million consumers.
In an interview with Efe in Vienna, where he is participating in the General Conference of the UN nuclear agency, the foreign minister recalled that the final agreement includes all the environmental aspects demanded by the EU.
On June 28, the EU and Mercosur finalized the trade agreement after 20 years of negotiations, which still needs to be ratified to enter into force.
The head of Argentine diplomacy assured that Mercosur adopted the environmental position of the EU, and that in the final agreement "the environmental aspects are clearly defended and protected.".
However, he said that a certain "confusion" had been created with the environmental issue in order to call into question the commercial aspects of the treaty.
"A mix-up was made that some countries tried to use as a kind of 'trick' in the negotiation process for the commercial part," Faurie explained., although without mentioning any specific State.
French President Emmanuel Macron said at the end of August that he would not sign the pact with Mercosur, considering that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro "lied" when he made commitments on the "protection of biodiversity."
Faurie recalled that the debates to protect the Amazon have their own specific framework, which is the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP), the next edition of which will be held next December in Chile.
In any case, the head of Argentine diplomacy considered that the agreement is not in danger given the "enormous benefits" that it will bring to all the countries involved, including France.
"The agreement is not in any way at risk at this point. We are in the initial phase of legislative cohesion," he added.
Faurie also indicated that Argentina could facilitate dialogue between Brazil and France to help overcome differences given that Buenos Aires has very good relations with both countries.
He said that Brazil has had a very active policy to defend its environmental heritage, as demonstrated by pioneering initiatives such as the Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.
"We are there to facilitate a dialogue to understand that Brazil has an environmental policy that, beyond some constructed phrases, does not forget that all the work of environmental protection on a global scale began in Rio in 1992," he stressed.
The foreign minister concluded by stating that possible compensation should be discussed for those countries that limit their development in order to preserve their environmental heritage for the benefit of humanity.
"There is an implicit issue in this that is a discussion that needs to be held: the preservation of environmental heritage, which is beneficial to humanity, will also require that we have compensation or measures for those countries that hold back aspects of their development to protect what everyone needs," he said.
Both the Brazilian government and the Mercosur Parliament (Parlasur) believe that France has a political interest beyond its real concern for what is happening in the Amazon.
The president of Parlasur, Uruguayan Daniel Caggiani, criticized weeks ago that the will of some European countries not to sign the agreement is a "trick" to stop the approval of the treaty.
The access of the competitive agricultural sector of Mercosur to the European market has sparked protests from farmers in countries such as France, Ireland and Italy.
In Latin America, on the other hand, it has been the industry, such as the motor industry, that has protested against the consequences of free trade with the EU.
Source: Reuters
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