It is premature to sign a Mercosur-EU agreement without guarantees for the agricultural sector, says Giorgia Meloni

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stated that she considers it premature to sign the trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur in the coming days, evaluating that sufficient guarantees for farmers are still lacking. In a speech to the Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday, 17, Meloni said that Italy has always viewed the initiative with interest, but emphasized that the government will only give its approval when there are "adequate guarantees of reciprocity for our agricultural sector." According to the prime minister, the agreement has political and economic value as it functions as a "bridge between Europe and Latin America" and is expected to have "important and positive repercussions for Italian exports, both in the industrial and food sectors," in addition to protecting "more than 50 Italian geographical origin denominations." Nevertheless, Meloni stressed that Rome has been clear in stating that the initiative "must be positive for all sectors." The head of the ...