Agricultural trade in the treaty of association between European Union and MERCOSUR: an achilles’ heel or a reason to be united?

Abstract

The signing of the Treaty of Association between the European Union and MERCOSUR would close decades of discontinuous negotiations between the two blocks, it is a multi-thematic association agreement that includes trade negotiations and political and cooperation commitments. However, there is a conflict of interest between the blocks, specifically regarding agricultural trade, which remains the Achilles’heel of the achievement of the Treaty and the limitation of a complete ratification of it. This article aims to explain the commitments made by the EU and MERCOSUR on agricultural trade in the Agreement, as well as analyzing advantages and disadvantages that its implementation implies for the European and South America block. Lastly, we’ll present the position of each of the blocks regarding the ratification and implementation of this economic integration treaty.