EU and Mercosur bloc sign free trade agreement
發佈日期: 2026-01-18 20:02
TVB News
The European Union and the Mercosur bloc of South American countries formally signed a long-sought free trade agreement strengthening commercial ties in the face of rising protectionism
and trade tensions around the world.
The EU Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic arriving at a hotel in Paraguay's capital Saturday.
The Commissioner said starting Monday the debate to ratify the free trade agreement between the EU and the Mercosur bloc of South American countries will be pushed forward in the European Parliament, saying he would get this consent in the first half of the year.
"Just to make sure that we do our best, that we would get this consent of the European Parliament in the first half of this year, because it would allow us to complete the ratification process very, very soon. I got the same reassurances and encouragement from all Mercosur ministers. I heard it also from the Mercosur leaders. Everyone will do the procedures as quickly as possible so we can benefit from this historic achievement."
He went on to say the agreement can offset the negative impact of US tariffs. "I think that mutually this deal helps us to overcome the dependencies and in our case the agreement with Mercosur can more than offset the negative impact of US tariffs on the EU economy."
"I think that it's a, I would say message to the whole world that if someone prefers and believes in high tariffs and power politics that Mercosur and European countries representing more than 700 million people clearly believe in low tariffs, in international law, predictability, certainty, and removing of the trade barriers because this creates smoother operation for economic operators."
