The free trade deal between the European Union and the South American trade bloc Mercosur would be the world's largest such agreement, affecting a total of 780 million people. But in late March, French President Emmanuel Macron not only described it as "a very bad agreement," he even suggested it should be "left behind" and called for "a new agreement."

Macron likely doesn't want to give right-wing populist parties like Marine Le Pen's National Rally any free ammunition for their campaign ahead of the EU elections in June. And he wouldn't want to get French farmers any more annoyed; they've already brought the country to a standstill for weeks with their protests.

Weeks later, Macron's words still resonate. The agreement between the EU and Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela, which was actually finalized five years ago, is still on hold. History is repeating itself: France also blocked the agreement in 2019. Back then, it was in response to the far-right Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro and his controversial policies in the Amazon rainforest.

Now, the French head of state is worried Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay may flood the European Union with cheap meat — and that French farmers will again take to the barricades. Meanwhile, German industry is pushing for the agreement to be concluded — if necessary by a qualified majority, even without France.

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