European Parliament gives green light for the CJEU to examine the pact with Mercosur

The European Parliament on Wednesday approved a proposal put forward by the European Left and the Greens to request the opinion of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on the compatibility of the agreements with Mercosur  with the Union Treaties, so that it could temporarily halt their entry into force.

The vote passed by a margin of just ten votes. The proposal put forward by Patriots, Vox’s European group, failed, even though both proposals called for the same thing. Vox’s MEPs supported the European Left proposal to ensure that one of the two would pass, as the two initiatives were identical.

PP AND PSOE VOTE AGAINST

In contrast, the MEPs from the Spanish People’s Party and the PSOE chose to vote against this proposal promoted by the European group in which parties such as ERC, BNG, Sumar, Podemos and EH Bildu are integrated.

As Santiago Abascal’s party explains, both proposals were virtually identical; the content and objective were the same: to urge the European Parliament to take a position on the legality of the agreement with Mercosur. Furthermore, they have denounced the fact that the agreement was divided into two parts: one focused on trade and the other on association.

In fact, Vox reported on its social networks the approval of the initiative promoted “at the behest” of this party, although the one approved was the one registered by the European Left and Greens.

SUSPENSION OF THE TREATY

It’s worth remembering that the agreement with Mercosur was signed on Saturday the 17th in Paraguay. With this initiative approved today, the implementation of this agreement could be temporarily suspended. This measure, Vox points out, could lead to the precautionary paralysis of Mercosur “for months or years until the matter is resolved.”

If the CJEU ultimately rules that the Treaties have been violated, the agreement could be blocked in whole or in part, permanently. This is the first time a majority of Parliament has agreed to consult this court on the compatibility of an international agreement with the Treaties.