France will continue to oppose the current draft of a free trade agreement between the European Union and the South American trade bloc of Mercosur, given the deforestation threats in the region of the latter, French Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2020) France will continue to oppose the current draft of a free trade agreement between the European Union and the South American trade bloc of Mercosur, given the deforestation threats in the region of the latter, French Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Friday.
The EU and Mercosur announced they had reached a free trade agreement in principle at the 2019 G20 Osaka summit. However, the negotiations on the deal are to continue, because it has not been finalized and ratified by both sides due to deforestation concerns in the Amazon region.
"Deforestation threatens biodiversity and worsens the climate. The report presented by Stefan Ambec [French economist] confirms the position of France to oppose the draft EU-MERCOSUR agreement in its current form. This concerns the consistency of our country's and Europe's environmental obligations," Castex wrote on Twitter.
France has voiced its concern about the agreement in line with criticism towards Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro over his failure to protect the Amazon rainforest, which is suffering from wildfires and deforestation activities. The French government said it would veto the agreement unless the Brazilian authorities deal with the matter.
The agreement, given that it is reached, would be the largest free trade deal for the Mercosur bloc, which includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, as well as for the EU in terms of tariff reduction on the export of goods to Mercosur countries.
