“[It’s] a terrible agreement as it is being negotiated now. [It] was negotiated 20 years ago. […] It’s not what we want,” the French president said. “Let’s put [it] aside and build a new, more responsible agreement, taking into account issues such as climate and reciprocity,” he added.
Lula and Sánchez have signed bilateral agreements in the areas of communications; science, technology, and innovation; public administration, and health.
Representatives of society discussed the agreement with the European Union at Rio’s Museum of Tomorrow on Monday, the first day of the event. The text of the deal, drafted in 2019 after over 20 years of talks, was considered unfair and unequal.
Lula emphasized that the absence of a trade agreement is not due to a lack of willingness on the part of South Americans but rather results from European protectionism.
Approved in 2019 after 20 years of negotiations, the Mercosur-EU agreement requires ratification by the parliaments of all members of the two blocs to enter into force.