EU Trade Deal With Mercosur Defies Trump’s Protectionism (1)

The European Union and Mercosur have delivered their long-sought trade pact, along with a political statement few could have imagined when talks began 25 years ago.

The deal with the South American bloc of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay will create a free-trade area large enough to rival the decades-old North American arrangement now known as USMCA. Beyond commerce, it is a major geopolitical win for the EU, strengthening its foothold in a resource-rich region increasingly contested by the US and China.

For European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and leaders like Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, ...