France has declared dead and buried the EU's free trade agreement with Mercosur, the common market of several Latin American countries, amid a wave of agricultural protests. Many French farmers, who already feel harmed by globalization and competition from other countries, see the contract as an existential threat. As tractors block dozens of highways with this and other demands, President Emmanuel Macron has called on the European Commission to end negotiations.
For Paris there is a double front: Europe and France. In his first general political speech to the National Assembly, the new Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced this Tuesday that, among other measures to benefit the sector, one of the priorities in the European Union is to discuss the agreement with Mercosur. Macron's intention is to present the issue, along with other demands from French farmers, to the European Council in Brussels this Thursday.
Attal's words and Macron's promises failed to calm the protest. According to the BFMTV broadcaster, there are around 50 blocking points across the country. That's fewer than last week, but agricultural unions hope to get more concessions from the government if they keep them.
Attention is turning to Paris, whose main union, FNSEA, has proposed a “siege” by closing off main access roads. A convoy from a minority union close to Marine Le Pen's national rally was due to reach Rungis, Europe's largest wholesale market.
It is not too difficult for drivers to avoid roadblocks entering and exiting the capital. The Interior Ministry has deployed 15,000 police and gendarmes throughout the area and sent armored vehicles to protect Rungis, which is essential to supplying the capital.
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal during his speech to the National Assembly in Paris on January 30. SARAH MEYSSONNIER (Portal)
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Facing his first crisis since his appointment by Macron on January 9, Attal is tightening measures to appease farmers. On Friday, during a visit to a farm, he announced the abolition of the increase in the tax on tractor fuel. Addressing the National Assembly on Tuesday, he said payments and aid to rural areas will be accelerated in sectors such as livestock farming and viticulture.
“Our agriculture is a strength,” he told the chamber, “not only because it feeds us in the true sense, but because it represents one of the foundations of our identity and our traditions.” “So, and I say it solemnly, There is and must be a derogation for French agriculture,” he added.
The idea of the agricultural exception is reminiscent of the cultural exception: the idea that French products need special protection because they are closely linked to the country's identity and the rights of its citizens. According to surveys, support for the agricultural movement among the population is almost 90%. Nobody wants to criticize them. The government, which has shown greater intransigence and even a heavy hand in the face of other protests, is listening to the major unions and has avoided suppressing and condemning the blockades.
One of the demands is to end what some farmers call “unfair competition” from EU neighbors such as Italy and Spain. Farmers in these countries are said to be subject to less stringent rules than those in France, giving them a competitive advantage over the French.
“I would like us to see what additional measures we can take against this story of unfair competition,” Attal responded to a farmer on Sunday during a visit to a cattle farm. “It is not normal to be prevented from using certain products and for neighboring countries, Italy and others, to use them and.” [sus productos] Come here.”
Spanish Agriculture Minister Luis Planas responded on Monday: “The production and marketing standards in the EU are similar in all member states and everyone, from Germany to Spain, Portugal, Holland or Italy, applies them the same.” And he added: “Therefore There is no competitive advantage from applying different standards.”
After Attal's speech, the next step to lifting the blockades must be the European Council in Brussels. Some claims of French agriculture – the first in Europe and the one that receives the most funding – are decided not at national level but at EU level. The Prime Minister identified three points that, according to the sector, are damaging the French countryside and that the States are deciding in Brussels: the rule that requires 4% of fields to be fallow; Ukrainian chicken imports and the agreement with Mercosur.
Macron's opposition to the free trade agreement is not new, but he believes he had his reasons for the protests. According to an Elysée Palace source who requested anonymity: “[el presidente] has stated to the Commission with the utmost certainty that it is impossible to draw a conclusion [el tratado con Mercosur] under these conditions”. The source added that the European Commission, which is responsible for negotiating on behalf of the Union, “understood that it was impossible to reach a conclusion in this context.”
Talks with Mercosur will continue, said European Commission spokesman Éric Mamer at a press conference in Brussels on Tuesday. The aim remains an agreement that respects the environment and “the sensitivities” of European agriculture. But Mamer added: “Currently the Commission’s analysis is that the conditions for concluding negotiations with Mercosur are not met.”
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