Seven members of the European Parliament (MEP) visited Argentina and Uruguay this week for high-level discussions on the EU-Mercosur association agreement. The European Union (EU) is in the process of defining the deal’s legal structure, which will have important ramifications for its path forward, while sustainability concerns remain on the agenda.

The Milei government’s ambivalence toward Mercosur is another topic of interest. MEP David McAllister, who chairs the parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, and Argentine deputy Fernando Iglesias, who leads the Lower House’s Foreign Affairs Committee, downplayed the issue in a meeting with journalists, saying that the priority is getting the agreement ratified.

The MEPs’ visit comes as the European Union and Mercosur blocs prepare to ratify the agreement. The negotiations for the deal concluded in December after 25 years, and EU officials have told the Herald they “aspire” for it to be ratified by the end of the year.

The Committee on Foreign Affairs’ role is to guide “the procedure whereby Parliament decides whether to consent to the political and cooperation aspects of this agreement,” according to the European Parliament, and the visit feeds into that work.

A key outstanding question is what legal architecture the agreement will have, since this affects........

© Buenos Aires Herald