BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s chancellor and Brazil’s president expressed hope Monday that decades-long negotiations could soon lead to a flexible industrial deal finalized between the 27-member European Union and a bloc of four South American countries.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told reporters in Berlin they supported the industrial deal between the EU and Mercosur, made up of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. The two blocs will hold a summit in Rio de Janeiro on Thursday, but final approval of an initial industrial deal remains elusive.
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“We are firmly determined to ensure that the agreement is concluded quickly,” Scholz said after a meeting of senior officials from both countries in the German capital.
Lula also vowed to fight for the deal, and said he hoped for a breakthrough at the Rio de Janeiro meeting. “As long as I can believe that the agreement is possible, I will fight for it,” the Brazilian president said. “I’m not giving up.”
Such an industry agreement would create one of the world’s largest flexible industry spaces, with more than 700 million people.
The EU and Mercosur states have been in talks for more than 20 years. A fundamental agreement reached between the parties in 2019 has not been implemented due to a variety of concerns, in addition to the rainforest ion in South America and the preference of some European countries for their farmers thanks to less expensive South American imports.
“We think it would be a big step forward, although bilateral relations are very good,” Scholz said.
The two leaders also signed a bilateral agreement on a partnership for a “socially just and ecological transformation” and said they intend to work more closely together in fighting disinformation and hate speech.
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