Legal Aspect of the Mercosur Deal
By Maria Rogano
To understand what happens next regarding the EU–Mercosur Trade Deal, it is essential to first grasp the legislative process. According to Article 207 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the European Commission makes a recommendation to the Council to authorise the opening of negotiations with another state. The Commission represents the EU in external relations and acts in consultation with a special committee to which it reports on the progress of negotiations. Furthermore, it must inform the European Parliament, which is not a co-legislator in this process but must give its consent before ratification.
The negotiations have been completed. What happens now? According to paragraph 4, unanimity in the Council is required; however, as we know, such agreement is currently far from being achieved. This is without even mentioning the subsequent need for ratification by all national parliaments. Why is unanimity in the Council necessary? Under Article 218, this requirement exists because the agreement is a mixed one, covering areas that do not fall exclusively within the EU’s competence.
To identify the weak points of the trade deal, it is worth examining the concerns raised by the European Parliament. Parliament stressed that the negotiating guidelines should include practical mechanisms to ensure that any future agreement aligns with EU principles: the development and consolidation of democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights, the promotion of economic and social cohesion, and the reduction of inequalities between social sectors and regions.
Since 2011, one of the most sensitive issues has been the agricultural and food industry sectors, due to the uncertain impact on EU farmers and the differing safety and production standards. In 2021, the European Parliament acknowledged the potential benefits of the agreement but also raised several key concerns in its resolution, including social protection and deforestation. It proposed that compliance with the Paris Agreement should become a mandatory precondition for all future trade deals.
Free trade remains one of the EU’s main objectives, yet the current global crises highlight the need to prioritise environmental protection. It is therefore crucial to ensure that any trade agreement supports, rather than undermines, the safeguarding of the environment.
