4:59 28 November 2024
Tusk opposes EU-Mercosur deal
Poland will block the EU-Mercosur free trade agreement in its current form, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced on Tuesday. The deal, negotiated since 1999 and covering 700 million people across the EU and Mercosur nations (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Uruguay), remains controversial, especially among European farmers.
The draft resolution, prepared by the Ministry of Development and Technology, was reviewed during a government meeting. Agriculture Minister Czesław Siekierski and Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz advised rejecting the current terms, citing increased tariff quotas for poultry as a key issue.
"The Council of Ministers opposes the negotiation results in agriculture, particularly the expanded poultry quotas," Tusk stated. French farmers have also voiced strong opposition to the agreement, fearing detrimental impacts on their industry. Despite reaching an agreement in 2019, the pact has yet to secure EU-wide ratification.
