Imagine a trade deal that takes twenty-five years to negotiate, sparks protests across Europe, divides governments, worries environmental groups, and is expected to become one of the most consequential trade agreements of the decade, yet, never designed to deliver immediate economic returns or to transform people’s livelihoods overnight. So why was it signed at all? Because regardless of major implementation challenges, political resistance, and slow effects, the agreement se

The proposed trade agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur bloc has become one of the most protracted negotiations in contemporary international trade. Negotiations initially began in 1999, which did not conclude in principle until twenty years later, in 2019. Since then, however, the deal has not yet been ratified and implemented due to ongoing disputes over its contents. Despite attempts to revive it, opposition within Europe and unresolved concerns about envi