{"id":31119,"date":"2026-01-18T09:32:00","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T05:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gbc1.net\/?p=31119"},"modified":"2026-03-01T14:58:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T10:58:55","slug":"eu-and-mercosur-finally-sign-fta-after-25-years-of-talks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gbc1.net\/index.php\/2026\/01\/18\/eu-and-mercosur-finally-sign-fta-after-25-years-of-talks\/","title":{"rendered":"EU and Mercosur Finally Sign FTA After 25+ Years of Talks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On 17 January 2026, the European Union (EU) and #Mercosur<\/a> signed a Free Trade Agreement after more than 25 years since negotiations first started. Some observers note that the success can be attributed to the US President Trump’s negative stance toward long-time allies in Europe, who are scrambling to ‘derisk’ from the USA. Trump has accused the EU of ‘taking advantage’ of the US, urged European allies to contribute more to NATO, and threatened to take Greenland by ‘one way or another.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a show of goodwill and expression of commitment, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa traveled to Asuncion, Paraguay, to sign the Free Trade Agreement (#FTA<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n

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EU and Mercosur Sign FTA in Asuncion, Paraguay, on 17 January 2026<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

In her speech, European Council President Ursula von der Leyen underscored that the EU has made a clear and deliberate choice to uphold fair trade over tariffs. However, Austria, France, Hungary, Ireland, and Poland voted against the deal, while Belgium abstained. The European Parliament and national legislatures still need to ratify the accord before it comes into effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most strident opposition came from European farmers. As the largest agricultural producer in the EU, France voted against the FTA with Mercursor, fearing being flooded by cheaper agricultural produce from Latin America. Finally, the two sides agreed to a rate-quota system for sensitive products such as beef and poultry. With the FTA, the EU hopes to sell more automobiles and industrial machinery to Mercosur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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