EU-Mercosur deal referred to the EU Court of Justice

The European Parliament's request for a legal opinion on the EU-Mercosur trade agreement could delay it by up to two years

Corina Cristea, 22.01.2026, 13:50

The European Parliament has decided to ask the European Court of Justice to assess whether the agreement with the South American states that make up the Mercosur group is compatible with the EU treaties.

Negotiated for more than 25 years, the trade deal cuts most customs duties between the EU and Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay. But following Wednesday’s decision, the European Parliament will only be able to vote on the agreement after a legal opinion has been issued. This could mean a delay of up to two years before the document can take effect.

The decision was welcomed by EU farmers gathered in Strasbourg, who organised large-scale protests amid concerns that the deal would lead to higher imports of cheap food, including beef, poultry and sugar. In their opinion, the additional guarantees secured during the negotiations are insufficient.

The European Commission can, however, opt for the provisional implementation of the agreement.

Out of Romania’s 33 MEPs, 16 have voted to send the deal to the ECJ. In Bucharest, the Social Democratic Party said the vote in Strasbourg was an extraordinary victory made possible by the party’s 10 votes, which they say pushed the European Parliament’s decision in favour of having the Mercosur deal reviewed by the Court of Justice.

The Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) also welcomed the vote in the European Parliament, but warned that trade between the EU and the Mercosur states will begin, even if the political agreement is not yet democratically validated.

At the opposite pole, the National Liberal Party views the EP vote to send the deal to the Court of Justice as coming against the interests of agriculture and industry in Romania and in the EU. The Liberals argue that, as a result of this decision, the safeguard clauses for farmers, proposed and supported by the Romanian members of the European People’s Party, namely the National Liberal Party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, will no longer be applicable.

In turn, the MEP Dan Barna (Save Romania Union) says that referring the agreement to the ECJ is very good news for China and probably for Donald Trump, and that the vote in Strasbourg showed the European Parliament’s inability to understand the strategic importance of opening up the EU to other markets. (AMP)