It was previously known that a critical decision on the pact was made in the Netherlands. Although the agreement was rejected once in 2020, as in Austria in 2019, parties like that of Prime Minister Marc Rutte have recently been open again. On Tuesday there was a majority decision against a pact that includes agricultural goods.
“Times of such disastrous free trade agreements are over”
The Mercosur countries primarily want to bring agricultural goods to Europe, while Europe wants to export industrial goods to South America. Esther Ouwehand, leader of the Partij voor de Dieren (Party for the Animals), spoke in a tweet of an “impressive” voting result that “ends the free trade agreement that is extremely bad for the Amazon, the animals and the Dutch farmers”. The days of “such disastrous free trade agreements” are over.
According to Greenpeace, the critical application was submitted to the APA after Prime Minister Rutte had recently made positive comments about the agreement. This is despite the fact that the Netherlands already had a negative decision in 2020 – as in Austria in 2019. “Resistance in Europe against the toxic EU-Mercosur Pact is growing,” Greenpeace agricultural expert Sebastian Theissig-Matei warned of environmental damage in South America and enormous price pressure for local farmers.
Brussels wants to “quickly bring the agreement to a conclusion”
Recently, however, it was said from Brussels that they wanted to conclude the agreement quickly – there was talk of signing by July. Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans said in February that it was the “urgent desire” of European leaders to bring the agreement “to a quick conclusion”. He referred to statements by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) during his current trip to Latin America – as well as by French President Emmanuel Macron. Critical voices were often raised from France and Macron – so the agreement must establish EU standards in South America.
Kogler: “Also a question of climate protection”
Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler then rejected the pact again on Wednesday. It was rejected in the government agreement with the ÖVP, it said in a statement to the APA. It is also a question of climate protection, according to the Green leader. The ÖGB demanded that Economics Minister Martin Kocher from the Green coalition partner ÖVP confirm Austria’s negative position tomorrow, Thursday, at an informal Council of Trade Ministers in Brussels.
Critics like the AK recently warned against a so-called splitting of the agreement. The EU Commission wants to divide the agreement into a political and an economic chapter. For example, the necessary unanimity of all member states in the Council would fall on the trade part. “As a result, the Austrian National Council would also lose its decision-making rights in such a far-reaching matter,” said the Chamber of Labor.
The Austrian National Council had already positioned itself against the agreement in 2019, as Kogler also recalled on Wednesday. Specifically, the EU sub-committee voted against the EU-Mercosur agreement in September with votes from all parties except NEOS. This obliged the government to say no to the EU-Mercosur agreement at EU level. The pact was put on hold because decisions in the EU Council must be unanimous. ÖVP Agriculture Minister Norbert Totschnig recently opposed the agreement and rejected splitting.
The NEOS recently reiterated their demand for an end to Austria’s blockade. The ÖVP Farmers’ Association and the Chamber of Agriculture, on the other hand, have again vehemently emphasized their negative attitude. Criticism also came from the FPÖ. The Federation of Austrian Industries (IV) and the Chamber of Commerce (WKÖ) were always in favor, but want to see climate concerns taken seriously. Greenpeace would like the domestic government to reach an agreement with the Netherlands and France and stop the trade pact.
