“The German press wrote plainly that after the presidential elections in Poland everything would be rubber-stamped. The government did not want to build a majority and left it in the shape it was in at the beginning,” said Piotr Müller, a Member of the European Parliament from Law and Justice (PiS), about the EU-Mercosur agreement.
On Saturday, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, signed the trade agreement with the Mercosur countries. It will create a free trade area covering more than 700 million consumers. Farmers from across Europe protested against the agreement, pointing out that it would flood the EU market with cheaper food that fails to meet standards.
The Polish opposition was also skeptical, claiming that Donald Tusk’s government failed to use Poland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union and did not fight to create a blocking majority.
Today in Strasbourg, the European Parliament will, for the third time in this term, consider a motion to dismiss the European Commission. Piotr Müller, a Member of the European Parliament from Law and Justice (PiS), announced on platform X that he had signed the motion to dismiss the head of the Commission.
“Pushing through the Mercosur agreement is a blow to Polish agriculture and the economy. This week in Strasbourg, the European Parliament will vote on this motion. My position is clear – NO to Ursula, NO to Mercosur. But this vote will also be a test for representatives of Civic Coalition, Polish People’s Party in the European Parliament. If they believe this agreement is bad for Poland – they must vote to dismiss the President of the European Commission,” he added.
Müller on Republika: “There was time for this“
On the same day, the MEP appeared on air on TV Republika. Asked about Poland’s missed opportunity in the context of holding the presidency in 2025, he said: “From the very beginning, this government did not want to do this. This was visible during the Polish presidency. In 2025, we had a six-month presidency. There was time to build a blocking majority. During the presidential elections in Poland, Donald Tusk said that this agreement would not happen.”
“Everyone, however, knew that under the table an agreement with Germany was being negotiated. The German press wrote plainly that after the elections everything would be rubber-stamped. The government did not want to build a majority and left it in the shape it was in at the beginning,” he said.
Asked whether there is still a possibility to withdraw from the EU-Mercosur agreement, Müller replied: “From a formal point of view, such a possibility still exists. Despite the fact that the agreement was signed before adoption by the European Parliament, the EP must give its consent. If there were enough courageous MEPs in the EP, this agreement could still be stopped.”
He noted, however, that the chances are “not very high.”
“However, I am looking at how emotions are changing in individual countries. Emmanuel Macron was ready to support this, and then withdrew his support. I believe that the pressure that may be exerted on MEPs over the coming weeks could change this. Sometimes in the EP, contrary to appearances, what seems to be the majority can be decided by 15-20 votes – in a parliament that has 720 members. That is not a very large difference,” he added.
“Some slick operators will make money”
The PiS MEP emphasized that “agreements of this type must be viewed broadly.”
“There will certainly be entities that use this type of agreement for their own individual purposes. The same was true, for example, with letting goods in from Ukraine. Some tried to make a business out of it. For our country as a whole, limiting imports from Ukraine is good in many areas when it comes to agriculture, because it is good for the entire agricultural sector. Of course, some slick operators will try to gain from this agreement. But that is not the point. Agreements of this type are signed with the entire economy of our country in mind. And for our entire economy, this agreement will simply be unfavorable,” he explained.
He also pointed out that Russia will profit from the EU-Mercosur agreement as well.
“Several billion euros in additional financial resources flow into Russia because Brazil buys fertilizers. Europe says: fine, we limit imports from Russia, impose sanctions, and at the same time Brazil buys these goods. And in the end, they sell us a cheaper product because their sanctions do not apply, to Europe. When we show this, they close their eyes. Ursula von der Leyen directly received calculations from us in this regard. Of course, they do not see this. Soon there will also be a second agreement, which will pose a certain risk if it is written in such a way – although it concerns agriculture less. I am referring to the agreement with India,” he said on TV Republika.