European Parliament votes to delay Mercosur deal in court

The European Parliament voted on Wednesday for a legal check of the EU’s trade deal with four members of the Latin American Mercosur bloc, a move that could severely delay or even derail the deal.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz took to social media soon after news of the vote, calling the result “regrettable” and saying it “misjudges the geopolitical situation.”

The EU signed the deal with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay on Saturday, after a quarter of a century of negotiations. But it still requires approval from the European Parliament before it can formally take effect.

Lawmakers in the European Parliament in Strasbourg backed the motion with 334 votes in favor, 324 against, and 11 abstentions.

That means the EU’s Court of Justice (CJEU) will be charged with checking whether the agreement can legally be applied before full ratification from all member states, and whether its provisions would restrict the EU’s ability to set environmental and consumer health policy. The CJEU typically takes in the region of two years to reach decisions on such queries.

Opponents, led by France — the EU’s largest agricultural producer — say the Mercosur deal could increase imports of cheap beef, sugar and poultry, undercutting domestic farmers.

Farmers across Europe, but particularly in France and Belgium, home to the European Parliament sites in Brussels and Strasbourg, have repeatedly protested en masse against the deal in recent months.

Protesters lobbied outside the Strasbourg parliament for a second consecutive day during Wednesday’s vote, after police used tear gas to disperse them on Tuesday.

European Commission ‘deeply regrets’ the delay

The deal was a central priority of the European Commission and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who shepherded it through a key, delayed vote on January 9 among the EU’s 27 leaders. 

“The more trading partners we have worldwide, the more independent we are,” she said at the Davos World Economic Forum on Tuesday, in reference to the Mercosur deal and another being negotiated with India. 

The agreement is supported by South America’s cattle-raising countries and industrial interests in Europe, but has met stern resistance from Europe’s agricultural sector, which has also focused on von der Leyen as the agreement’s spearhead in its protests. 

The Commission said on Wednesday that it “strongly regrets” the vote’s outcome. 

The chairman of the European Parliament’s trade committee, Bernd Lange, called the decision “absolutely irresponsible” and an “own goal.” 

He said that opponents should have voted against the deal when it cleared the Parliament, rather than supporting “delaying tactics under the guise of legal review.”