This Wednesday, the Senate unanimously approved the draft legislative decree in which the National Congress formalizes its support for the trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union, which is now headed for promulgation.
After the project is ratified by the Legislature — it had already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies last week — the Executive must issue a decree to incorporate the agreement into the country’s legislation.
The EU and Mercosur — formed by Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay — signed the trade pact on January 17, after 25 years of negotiations. But, even with signature, the new agreement needs to be confirmed by the Legislatures of the parties involved — the European Parliament and the parliaments of each member of Mercosur.
During its processing in the National Congress, the text of the project was not modified. In the case of international treaties, it is up to the Executive to negotiate the terms of the trade pact, while the Legislative only has to endorse or reject the agreement.
“Our role does not end with ratification; it only begins”, said the rapporteur of the proposal in the Senate, Tereza Cristina (PP-MS).
“The real challenge will begin with the entry into force of the instrument. We must identify bottlenecks and sensitive sectors that will need support to ensure their competitiveness; anticipate possible imbalances and maneuvers that could erode negotiated preferences; and promote legislative and regulatory improvements that guarantee that Brazil enters this new stage of its international insertion under conditions of equality”, added the senator.
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After signing the pact in January, European parliamentarians threw cold water on the agreement by sending it to the Court of Justice of the European Union, which could delay its implementation by up to two years. There is the possibility, however, of application on a provisional basis.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced last week that the EU will begin provisional implementation of the agreement, even though it has not yet been approved by the European Parliament.
Also last week, the parliaments of Argentina and Uruguay ratified the South American bloc’s agreement with the EU.
Safeguards
Defenders of the trade pact argue that it is important to offset losses caused by trade disputes led by the United States and to reduce dependence on China.
Critics of the agreement in Europe, led by France, say it tends to increase imports of beef, sugar and poultry at low prices, harming local producers.
On Wednesday afternoon, while the Senate was discussing the project on the trade pact, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva issued a decree to regulate the application of safeguards aimed at protecting sectors of the economy if the effects of trade agreements generate significant losses.
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The measures may be applied when imports of a product subject to preferential conditions of any trade agreement increase in quantity and under conditions that cause or threaten to cause serious harm to the domestic industry, according to the decree.
