After Carnival, negotiations to reach a trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union (EU) will move to Asunción on February 19 to try to resolve the "remaining differences" after two decades of discussions.
"We have made significant progress (…), but there is still work to be done to achieve a positive outcome," said European Commission spokesman Daniel Rosario at a press conference on Friday, reporting on the latest round of negotiations in Brussels.
After failing to reach a political agreement in Buenos Aires in December 2017, the foreign ministers of Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil met last week with the European Commissioners for Trade and Agriculture to try to unblock the negotiations.
During the meeting, which gave way to 10 days of discussions, The Europeans have indicated their willingness to improve their commercial offer, such as beef, up to 99.000 tonnes compared to the 70.000 currently on the table., according to several sources.
This offer, which has yet to be formalised, represented a solution to a "major obstacle", in the words of a South American diplomatic source, especially when Mercosur had hoped for an improvement during the meetings in Argentina.
"In Asuncion, we are expecting clarifications on the offer," the source told AFP, adding that "if negotiations go well," an agreement in principle could be announced in the Paraguayan capital on March 2.
Meat for cars
The Exports of agricultural products, especially beef and ethanol, to a European bloc of 500 million inhabitants are crucial for Mercosur, but they also represent a delicate issue in Europe, especially in France.
In Buenos Aires, "we have reactivated a coalition of eleven [EU] countries that want firm respect for a certain number of agricultural sensitivities," said French Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne recently.
But as a European diplomatic source points out, the "hypothetical" improvement of the EU's agricultural offer to South American countries depends on what they put on the table in return. "Mercosur has not yet responded" to the proposal, he added.
In exchange for increasing their offer, the Europeans asked for new concessions from the South American bloc, especially in dairy products, in the protection of European geographical indications, in the automotive sector and in maritime services.
These points are among the "pending issues" for the Europeans, acknowledged a source from the European Commission, who said he hoped to "resolve the remaining differences" during the upcoming negotiations in the Paraguayan capital.
For a Mercosur source close to the negotiations, the latest round of negotiations in Brussels served to give both sides "a clear understanding of what can be expected to be included in the agreement and what cannot."
Geographical indications
Regarding geographical indications for products that the EU wants to protect, such as cheeses and wines, negotiators reviewed the results of a consultation carried out in Mercosur on which names would be more or less problematic to recognise, according to this source.
Latin American bloc can "recognise 80% of geographical indications" proposed by the EU, said the South American diplomatic source, stressing that the conflict centers on those names that have become common to identify a product, such as Parmesan cheese.
The sources consulted reiterated the commitment of both parties to reach an agreement in the coming weeks and avoid a possible standstill that could occur due to the elections in Brazil in October, before the European elections scheduled for May 2019.
"The agreement will be reached because there is political will on both sides," said the Latin American source, who believes that both sides should take advantage of the current window of opportunity, beyond the upcoming elections.
Both blocs have been trying to conclude an Association Agreement since 1999, which also includes political and cooperation chapters. The arrival of protectionist Donald Trump to the White House gave a boost to the negotiators, who tried in vain to close a political agreement by the end of 2017.
In 2016, European exports of goods to the South American bloc amounted to around 41.500 billion euros, slightly higher than imports from Mercosur countries (40.600 billion euros), according to figures from the European Commission.
Source: AFP
Aduana News is the first Argentine customs newspaper to launch its digital version. With 20 years of experience, its publications and initiatives aim to provide the most relevant knowledge on customs issues in order to contribute to safe trade in the region.
