Overview
- European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president António Costa will travel to Asunción to sign the agreement on Saturday after EU governments authorized the step on Friday.
- The Council’s green light followed Italy’s late switch to support the deal, overcoming opposition or abstentions from countries including France, Poland, Hungary and Belgium.
- Farmer protests continue across Europe, with roadblocks in France and Spain, though some actions eased as Catalan demonstrators opened a lane at the Port of Tarragona and began lifting that blockade, and Galicia’s A-52 saw partial reopening.
- Catalonia’s president Salvador Illa is meeting protesting farmers today after the region’s agriculture chief proposed an extraordinary forum to forge a common position, as demonstrators press for guarantees and compensation.
- The pact would phase out tariffs on roughly 91–92% of EU–Mercosur trade and includes limits on sensitive farm quotas and pesticide-residue bans, but critics remain unconvinced as the Parliament prepares a close vote and the Commission notes parts could be applied provisionally before full approval.