Good morning! Today, an exclusive interview with Ignacio Ybáñez, the EU ambassador to Brazil. Petrobras making moves. And a congressional hearings committee comes close to fruition.
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Will the Mercosur-EU deal ever be signed?
The European Union and Mercosur — the trade alliance between Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay — reached a free-trade agreement in June 2019. Facing opposition from European countries with strong agricultural lobbies, the document has lain dormant for the last three years.
Change? Ignacio Ybáñez, the EU ambassador to Brazil, told Brasília correspondent Cedê Silva that Russian aggression in Ukraine provoked a push from the Europeans in favor of the agreement, as the war “highlights the importance of working with reliable partners.”
- Mr. Ybáñez spoke to The Brazilian Report ahead of the upcoming 19th Forte de Copacabana International Security Conference, organized by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a German think tank, and the Brazilian Center for International Relations. The event takes place in Rio later this week.
- Here are the highlights of our interview, which has been...