Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Tuesday he seeks to finalize a trade agreement between the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) and the European Union (EU) before his country’s presidency of the South American bloc expires on Dec. 7.
In his weekly program « Conversation with the President, » Lula said he spoke with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday and expressed his willingness « to close the deal between Mercosur and the EU » during Brazil’s presidency of the bloc, which gathers Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
« I presented her with the important points and I hope we can close the deal soon, » Lula said, adding that he expects to meet with the European leader during the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Dubai, which opens on Nov. 30.
Mercosur will hold a summit in Rio de Janeiro on Dec. 6-7, days before the inauguration of Argentina’s president-elect Javier Milei, who had expressed his opposition to his country’s membership in Mercosur.
Following more than two decades of negotiations, the agreement reached by Mercosur and the EU in 2019 is still pending, while the EU earlier this year attached environmental clauses to the trade deal.
