Italy minister opposes current EU-Mercosur trade agreement

Rome: Italy’s agriculture minister on Monday opposed a proposed EU-South America trade deal, saying farmers in the Mercosur bloc should have the same “obligations” on workers’ rights and the environment.

“The EU-Mercosur treaty in its current form is not acceptable,” Francesco Lollobrigida, a close ally of Italy’s far-right Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, said in a statement.

“We must verify that Mercosur nations respect the same obligations we impose on our farmers in terms of workers’ rights and the environment,” he said.

However, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, whose conservative Forza Italia party is also part of Meloni’s governing coalition, was more positive.

“We are in favor in principle of agreeing with Mercosur, I confirm it, but there are points that must be resolved because they are not fully satisfactory for Italy,” he told reporters in Brussels.

Italy’s main agriculture unions oppose the trade deal, fearing that South American imports will undermine farmers’ livelihoods across the European Union.

French farmers on Monday launched a new wave of action to protest the pact, as Paris leads resistance to EU ratification of the deal with the Mercosur bloc of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, which would create the world’s largest free-trade zone.

Last month Tajani told CNN Brazil the negotiations were “very complex” but said it was “possible” to reach a deal “that is useful for both sides… I believe we have to move forward”.

Meanwhile, French farmers launched a new wave of action to protest a proposed trade pact between the European Union and four South American countries, which they say threatens their livelihoods.

Angry demonstrators staged dozens of rallies across the country, setting up mock gallows and erecting wooden crosses to symbolise the death of French agriculture.

The new wave of action came after farmers across Europe including France mounted rolling protests last winter over a long list of burdens they say are squeezing revenue.

The French government is leading resistance against ratification of the trade agreement with the Mercosur bloc of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay that would create the world’s largest free-trade zone.

On Sunday, President Emmanuel Macron defended France’s resistance as he visited Argentine’s President Javier Milei ahead of a G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro. He said France would “continue to oppose” the trade deal.

But farmers say Macron and the government should do more.

The FNSEA farming union and Jeunes Agriculteurs (“Young Farmers”), which together represent most farmers in France, backed the protests.

The demonstrations were largely symbolic but protesters say they are ready to up the pressure.

Around 300 farmers protested in the southeastern town of Le Cannet-des-Maures, where one sign unfurled along a road read: “Stop the promises, start with actions.”

“Macron, your agriculture is dying and you are looking elsewhere,” another banner said.

Local farmers also placed a cross next to a mock gallows with a message reading “France’s agriculture in danger”.

In the eastern city of Lyon, farmers tore down municipal signs and deposited them at the stairs of a museum.

The FNSEA and Jeunes Agriculteurs said more than 80 protests were being staged across the country, but no major roads were blocked.

“We have issued an initial warning to say stop to the Mercosur negotiations,” Xavier Haie, a FNSEA representative, said in Calvados in the northwest.

He also warned that farmers were waiting for the authorities to deliver on the promises of support made by the previous government before Macron dissolved parliament’s lower house in the summer, sparking a political crisis.

They include excessive bureaucracy, low incomes and poor harvests.

The proposed Mercosur pact has provoked fresh anger.

Farmers fear any agreement would open European markets to cheaper meat and produce from South American competitors, who are not forced to adhere to strict EU rules on pesticides, hormones, land use and environmental measures.

Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard said she “understood” the farmers’ anger.

The FNSEA said the protests could continue until mid-December.

France’s right-leaning Coordination Rurale farmers union threatened to step up pressure later this week, vowing to stage “an agricultural revolt” if no progress is made on the Mercosur pact.

On Sunday, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau warned farmers there would be “zero tolerance” in the event of “lasting” roadblocks.

The European Union and the four founding members of Mercosur — Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay — have been working to make a trade pact between their blocs a reality for 25 years.