Lula hopes for EU-Mercosur deal in January despite last-minute dither

Following the renewed delay in finalizing the free trade agreement between the European Union and four Mercosur countries, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva called on Europeans on Saturday to show more courage and political will.

“Unfortunately, Europe has not yet decided. The European leaders have asked for more time for additional measures to protect agriculture,” Lula said at the Mercosur summit in the Brazilian city of Foz do Iguaçu.

He added that without the political will and courage from the leaders, it would not be possible to conclude the negotiations that have been ongoing for 26 years.

Lula: Meloni ready to sign in January

Only on Wednesday, Lula had issued an ultimatum to the EU: “If we don’t do it now, Brazil will not make a deal as long as I am president,” he said at a government meeting.

However, the Brazilian president has now stepped back from this position. Lula said he had spoken with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the phone, and she assured him that she would be ready to sign at the beginning of January.

“The agreement will be concluded, and I hope that it might be signed in the first month of the Paraguayan presidency [of Mercosur] by my counterpart Santiago Peña,” said Lula. Peña is the president of Paraguay.

Necessary majority in EU did not materialize

The treaty was originally supposed to be signed at the summit in Brazil on Saturday. However, Meloni recently announced that she was not yet ready to agree to the planned agreement with the four countries Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, meaning that the EU majority required for signing would not materialize.