What power is at the origin of the scrambling of the GPS of the Ursula von der Leyen plane above Bulgaria on August 31? “The Russians, for sure. If it had been us, the plane would have crashed! »» Responds a minister to the Tangwall Campagin in a humor as creaky as it is revealing. “What is she getting involved in talking about taxation and geopolitics with Donald Trump?” »» A head of the Quai d’Orsay is annoyed, which is also highly raised against the president of the European Commission, openly accused of being obsessed with the conclusion of all-round free trade agreements, in “Taking into account only the interests of Germany”we are still plagia in the cozy circles of French diplomacy.
In recent days, in the ministries, no one has taken any precautions when it comes to unziping the “lady” of Brussels before the journalists. A word released by recent developments linked to the agreement of Mercosur. If media mass is said on history “With a bad agreement”political reality is more nuanced: that of an showdown which, for the first time, has folded the all-powerful president the commission. “If she has agreed to introduce safeguard clauses likely to force Mercosur countries on agricultural importswe explain to the ministries of agriculture and foreign trade, It is because she saw the moment of an outright rejection of the agreement by a locking minority. »»
The particularly tense showdown has been going out for a year and was likely to turn to humiliation for the Commission. In September of last year, its president had indicated to the Élysée that she wanted to conclude without waiting for negotiations with the Mercosur countries. Feeling the pressure of France on hesitant countries, Belgium, Ireland, Greece, Italy, Poland, the Iron Lady intends to impose its arbitration on the Union heads in paraphant on December 6 in Montevideo (Uruguay), surrounded by Luiz Inacio Lula and Javier Milei.
“For the first time, the all-powerful president has folded”
But behind the scenes, the French armada has organized. Laurent Saint-Martin (foreign trade), Benjamin Haddad and Jean-Noël Barrot (the two heads of the Quai d’Orsay) and Annie Genevard multiply the movements and meetings with their counterparts to convince them of the usefulness of an agreement including a certain number of protections. And the balance of power, at the beginning of summer, evolves. Ireland and Belgium switch to the neutral camp, Poland and Greece confirm their hostility, Italy lets itself be convinced by France … In the camp of the ardent supports of Von der Leyen, remains Germany, Portugal and Spain. The president understands that the risk of obstacle, and therefore of failure that she should endorse, is more and more significant. To the point of yielding, this week in a press release, on the safeguard clauses claimed by France, very restrictive, and which will allow the agreement to be suspended in agricultural matters in the event of non-compliance with strict rules, at the request of a single state or a single professional sector.
The details of the conditions of application of these clauses, their legal scope as their acceptance by the countries of South America are still to be specified. But it is indeed a symbolic victory of the States against the all-powerful commission which was played this week, and whose French government hopes to make a precedent.
