EU agrees on agriculture safeguards as fronts harden in Mercosur deal

Negotiators from EU countries and the European Parliament have agreed on new safeguards for imported agricultural products under the pending Mercosur free trade agreement, despite persisting divisions over the approval of the deal with four Latin American countries.

The controversial free trade deal is intended to boost trade between the European Union and the four Mercosur countries — Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay — but is still viewed critically by some in the EU.

The safeguards agreed on Wednesday are intended to appease European farmers and protectionist governments in an effort to get the long-negotiated deal over the finish line.

The emergency mechanism will allow the EU to temporarily suspend tariff preferences on certain agricultural products once the Mercosur deal is in place if these imports are considered harmful to EU producers.

A so-called qualified majority - at least 15 of the EU's 27 states, representing 65% of the bloc's population - was necessary to approve the safeguards.

The agreement however does not mean that the deal's future is safe.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen still needs the green light from EU leaders to sign off on the trade deal at a summit of Mercosur countries in Brazil on Saturday.

France is one of the countries opposed to the deal in its current form, and President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday warned there would be a strong response if his government's concerns were ignored.

Whether fellow EU leaders will be able to convince Macron at a summit in Brussels on Thursday remains to be seen.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has threatened to withdraw his country from a planned free trade deal with the EU if leaders fail to endorse it this week.