Date:Â 14/04/2021 Before signing the EUâMercosur trade agreement, the European Commission must deploy all its legal instruments, in close cooperation with the Parliament and Council, to guarantee strong sustainable development commitments from the Mercosur countries. The EU should also avoid concluding the deal as a mixed agreement. In June 2019, the EU and the Mercosur countries reached a free trade agreement (FTA) after almost two decades of negotiations, as part of an overall association agreement (AA). This FTA would establish the largest free trade area that the EU has ever created, covering a population of over 780 million. It would gradually (and only partially) open up the highly protected Mercosur economies and establish a strategic partnership with a region where China recently replaced the EU as the main trading partner. Updated EU FTAs with Mexico and Chile are also underway.