A member of the Confederation Paysanne farmers union drives his tractors with a placard reading “Stop the EU-MERCOSUR Agreement” as they take part in a protest to push France’s government to block the Mercosur trade deal, in Paris on January 9, 2026.
Thomas Samson / AFP
EU ambassadors have given Brussels the green light to sign the controversial Mercosur agreement.
The majority of EU countries approved on Friday, January 9th a huge but divisive trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur, diplomats said, giving Brussels the green light to sign an accord championed by business groups but loathed by many European farmers.
A majority of the European Union’s 27 nations voted in favour of the pact at an ambassadors’ meeting in Brussels, despite opposition from France, Ireland, Hungary and Poland concerned about its impact on the agricultural sector, several European diplomats told AFP.
The major concern is that farmers will be undercut by a flow of cheaper goods, including meat, sugar, rice, honey, and soybean, from agricultural giant Brazil and its neighbours.
Farmers across Europe have staged massive protests against the agreement that will likely be signed in Paraguay on Monday.
