Lula Says Mercosur-EU Deal Would Be a Response to “Trump’s Unilateralism”

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated today that it was “strange” for French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss with him a version of the agreement between the European Union and Mercosur that the previous Brazilian administration drafted.

Asked by a French journalist whether he would be willing to change the content of the text to get it approved, Lula said the version Macron is “complaining” about was presented by the prior government. “It was strange that Macron brought up the agreement made in the past. That’s not usual,” Lula said.

“If there is a problem that he believes harms small French farmers, I think Macron’s negotiator in the European Union should make a new proposal because he’s complaining about a deal signed by the previous government, which we didn’t even accept,” he added.

The president emphasized that the agreement involves not just Brazil and France but a total of 31 countries and reaffirmed his expectation that the deal between the two blocs will be finalized before the end of his term as head of Mercosur in late 2025. Signing the deal would be a response “to Trump’s unilateralism,” Lula said.

“France has no better friend in South America than Brazil. And Brazil has no better friend in Europe than France. So why can’t these two friends make a deal? If there’s an issue, let’s sit down and find out where the disagreement is,” he said.

In addition to the Mercosur-EU deal, Lula also addressed the war between Russia and Ukraine. He said he believes the end of the conflict is closer and that “everyone knows” what the outcome will be.

When asked specifically what he thinks will happen, Lula declined to comment. “I’m from South America, I won’t speculate on something so serious,” he said. “What I’m proposing is to create a commission of countries not involved in the war, to talk with Zelensky and Putin because every time you send someone to negotiate and it goes nowhere, you have to look for a new negotiator,” he concluded.

Source: Valor Econômico

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