MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

EU ‘ready’ to roll out Mercosur deal once South American ratifications start, von der Leyen says

In Brussels, the immediate obstacle is less the text itself than the institutional and political sequencing

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the European Union is prepared to provisionally implement the EU–Mercosur trade agreement as soon as Mercosur countries begin completing their ratification procedures, seeking to reassure partners after a European Parliament vote injected fresh uncertainty into the bloc’s approval track.

The message comes days after the agreement was signed in Asunción, an event framed by EU leaders as a strategic bet on rules-based trade at a time of mounting tariff threats and geopolitical friction. The ceremony —with Argentina’s President Javier Milei present and Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva absent— took place after negotiations stretching roughly 25 years.

In Brussels, the immediate obstacle is less the text itself than the institutional and political sequencing. On Wednesday, the European Parliament backed a motion —334 votes to 324, with 11 abstentions— to request a legal opinion from the EU’s Court of Justice (CJEU), a treaty mechanism that can slow down the process and sharpen divisions across party lines.

The Commission has signaled it will try to keep momentum. Vice-President Teresa Ribera described the parliamentary move as legitimate but emphasized how narrowly it passed, while indicating the Commission would explore ways to prevent a lengthy freeze. Reuters has reported that EU officials and some member states are examining options for provisional application, even as the Parliament’s role in granting final consent looms as the key political test.

After an extraordinary EU leaders’ meeting in Brussels —called primarily over transatlantic strains linked to Greenland— European Council President António Costa publicly urged the Commission to use the Council’s earlier decision to move toward provisional implementation when the timing is ripe.

Supporters of a faster rollout argue the deal would help Europe widen export markets and reduce vulnerability to protectionism elsewhere, while critics —from parts of the left to far-right groups and farming interests— warn about regulatory constraints and environmental and consumer-policy implications. The Parliament’s recourse to the CJEU underscores how contested the file remains inside the EU’s institutions.

The Council of the EU has already endorsed the signature of the EU–Mercosur package, but it also underlined that the agreements cannot be formally concluded without the European Parliament’s consent —a reminder that Brussels can prepare for speed, but cannot avoid a difficult political count in Strasbourg.