France, Ireland and Hungary will vote against the EU-Mercosur trade deal when it goes to a vote in the European Council on Friday, their leaders announced on Thursday. However, the opposition of these three countries is not enough to block the deal, and it is still expected to pass.
The deal was originally due to be voted on in Brussels in December and signed in Brazil the same month. However, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen announced that it would be postponed until January because of a lack of support within the bloc.
“France has decided to vote against the signature of the agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur countries,” French President Emmanuel Macron posted on X on Thursday afternoon, adding that the deal was from “a different time.”
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó also announced that his country would vote against the deal on Friday, saying that the European Commission was pushing for a deal that would “open Europe to unlimited imports of South American agricultural products at the expense of the livelihoods of Hungarian farmers.”
Ireland’s Taoiseach Micheál Martin confirmed during an official visit to Shanghai that Dublin would likewise oppose the deal.
Poland has also been critical of the deal. According to Polish Radio Portal, the Agriculture Minister Stefan Krajewski said on Thursday: “We want to block this agreement — that’s been our government’s position from the beginning. But given the difficulty in building a blocking minority, we’re working to secure the best possible protections for farmers.”
Despite the opposition of these countries, the deal is expected to pass. In order to block it, the deal’s opponents would need to muster a “blocking minority” of four countries that represent at least 35% of the EU’s population.
December’s delay came after support from Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wavered, and she sought more time to secure support for the deal domestically. If Italy had joined France, Hungary and Ireland in opposing the deal, their votes would be enough to block it.
“Since the announcement of the end of the negotiation in December 2024, I haven’t stopped mobilizing for a fairer deal to protect our farmers,” Macron wrote on X. “On that basis, we have obtained concrete progress, for which due credit must be given to the European Union.”
He listed recently-approved safeguarding clauses if Mercosur imports destabilized European markets; reciprocity measures on the environment, health, and animal welfare; and commitments to stronger sanitary controls.
However, he added that despite these commitments and further meetings in January, there was still “unanimous political rejection of the agreement.”