Lula da Silva promises to conclude Mercosur-EU free trade agreement in six months

The Workers’ Party (PT) candidate for President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said in an interview with Canal Rural that he would conclude the free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union in six months.

“I can guarantee that if I win the elections, we will conclude an agreement with the European Union in the first six months.

“An agreement that considers the need for Brazil to get back to reindustrialization because we can’t allow government purchases if we don’t harm small and medium-sized companies,” said Lula da Silva.

Brazil’s environmental policy is one of the main reasons European parliamentarians give for keeping the agreement on hold.

“We need this agreement. We came close to having a deal. We are willing to conclude (the agreement) because we have something to sell; we have competitive products, especially in agriculture.

“If it depends on me, we will sell everything we produce out there, and we will not give in to demands. We are going to negotiate,” he affirmed.

Regarding legal deforestation, allowed in certain percentages according to each biome by the Brazilian Forest Code and refuted by European countries, da Silva declared that “nobody is against”.

“It’s in the law that, if you buy land in the Amazon, 80% of the land has to be preserved,” said Lula da Silva.

The former president also said Brazil is “sovereign” and does not have to subordinate itself to the Europeans, who demand deforestation-free products.

“But they also can’t do what we want. They said no. We have to create conditions for them to say yes. It’s a negotiation process,” argued da Silva.

With information from Estadão

For the full picture, see our Mercosur EU Trade Deal: Complete Guide.