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"Such an agreement is in the interest of both parties. Therefore, we need to pave the way to approve it as soon as possible," German Chancellor Scholz stated.
On Monday, Brazil’s President Lula da Silva and Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that they will promote the signing of the trade agreement between the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) and the European Union (EU).
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"We will work hard to sign this agreement, which we hope to approve before June. We will show Europeans how flexible we are. We expect the EU to show us the same," Lula da Silva stated.
"The Mercosur-EU agreement is in the interest of both parties. Therefore, we need to pave the way to approve it and strengthen our economies," Scholz highlighted.
Since 1999, the EU has been negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Mercosur. In June 2019, both parties arranged to progressively eliminate tariffs on trade in various items, including agricultural goods.
In a conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron yesterday, when asked if Brazil would send ammunition to Ukraine, President Lula said, "our war is against poverty, not Russia." pic.twitter.com/nz5163YnTe
— BrianMier (@BrianMteleSUR) January 30, 2023
However, French agricultural sectors, President Jair Bolsonaro (Brazil), and President Mauricio Macri (Argentina) prevented this initiative from developing.
"We can ratify the 2019 agreement, but we must ensure that this situation does not recur," Lula da Silva stated and pledged to discuss this issue with the other Mercosur partners.
Scholz welcomed this initiative and stressed that the Lula administration’s environmental policies will make the Mercosur-EU agreement more effective.
Lula agreed to strengthen cooperation with Germany to increase the use of renewable energy, consolidate peace, and fight climate change and poverty, the Chancellor said.
Brazil: Massive March in defense of democracy and in rejection of fascism in Sao Paulo today. Video: Midia Ninja #Brazil #Lula #LulaPresidente #Bolsonaro pic.twitter.com/ut2vVBPeAV
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) January 9, 2023
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