-72b63a4e0c8c475ad81fe3eed3f63729.jpeg "Photo of Cyril Barabaltchouk")
The European Commission announced that the long-debated free trade agreement between the European Union and the South American bloc Mercosur will enter provisional application on May 1, 2026, Reuters reported on March 23.
The deal will take effect for member states that finalized their ratification procedures by the end of March. Currently, Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay have completed the process, with Paraguay expected to submit its notification shortly.
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While the accord has faced intense pushback from European agricultural sectors over the years, the Commission is moving forward to diversify supply chains and strengthen trans-Atlantic economic ties, Reuters wrote.
This milestone marks one of the EU’s most significant trade expansions into the Global South as it continues to decouple from sanctioned markets controlled by Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
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The European Union’s push for new trade alliances comes as it systematically severs economic ties with the Kremlin following years of energy blackmail. In early March 2026, the EU reaffirmed its refusal to resume Russian gas imports, even as global energy prices surged due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Currently, as the bloc works toward a total phase-out of Russian LNG by the end of 2026, trade deals with “friendly” partners like the Mercosur nations have become a strategic priority for stabilizing the European economy.
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-111f0e5095e02c02446ffed57bfb0ab1.jpeg "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
