EU to 'provisionally' apply Mercosur deal

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen took to X on Friday to announce that the EU will "provisionally" apply its free trade agreement with South America's Mercosur bloc despite opposition from France and Hungary, as well as a legal challenge, AzerNEWS reports.

The EU-Mercosur deal is a comprehensive association agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur bloc (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay) that aims to establish one of the largest free-trade areas in the world, encompassing more than 700 million people.

Farmers in Europe object that an agreement would result in low-cost imports of goods from South America.

Last month, the European Parliament voted to send the deal to the European Court of Justice for a legal opinion. The move does not necessarily prevent the Commission from implementing the agreement provisionally before MEPs provide their approval. The issuance of the legal opinion could take up to two years.