Now the balance of power has reversed.
Macron has lost influence in Brussels following defeats in European and national elections, while Barnier’s government faces an immediate challenge to rein in the public debt and could be toppled by Marine Le Pen of the far right at any time.
The freshly-reappointed von der Leyen is, meanwhile, stronger than ever. And she wants to seal the deal.
“Having been re-confirmed, the president of the Commission thinks she has a free hand to speed up the negotiation and conclusion of the agreement with Mercosur despite opposition from France and other countries,” said Marie-Pierre Vedrenne, a French MEP from Macron’s centrist camp, denouncing the accord as part of von der Leyen’s “German to-do list.”
“She is wrong, as a large part of public opinion in Europe is against this agreement,” said Vedrenne, who sits on the European Parliament’s trade committee.
Majority view
A larger part of opinion among EU governments is, however, in favor of the deal. That could prove decisive as, if the deal is structured in a certain way, a supermajority could override the objections of a small, French-led minority.
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