The Government's Secretary General Radu Oprea declared on Monday that he is skeptical about the EU-Mercosur trade agreement, as experience shows that Romania "misses the chances" of entering new markets, "but remains with economic threats".
"Theoretically, the agreement with Mercosur could be an opportunity. We export value-added products - cars, automotive components - and import raw materials such as soybean meal and tobacco. But our data is precarious. Foreign trade is the exclusive competence of the European Commission under the TFEU, and since 2022 - 2023, after creating the Romanian Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (ARICE), we dismantled the Foreign Trade Directorate, which had representation at the WTO, at the trade section at the Romanian Representation in Brussels, the headquarters in Bucharest and economic advisors in various areas," Oprea wrote on Facebook.
He noted that bilateral trade is managed by ARICE while policy is handled by the ministry, leaving gaps in analysis and impact studies.
"Information does not flow. How do we define Romania's position and negotiating mandates without risk analyses? The agreement cuts customs duties on over 92% of tariff lines - out of more than 18,000 defined by the WTO - creating opportunities for both sides. But Romania has no economic diplomacy in the Mercosur area: no advisors, no Chambers of Commerce representatives, no trade missions, no presence at fairs or exhibitions. We saw the same with Vietnam: after signing the EU - Vietnam agreement in 2019, exports stagnated, imports rose, and the deficit deepened," Oprea said.
He added that only this year did Romania manage to open the Vietnamese market for poultry meat, "thanks to stubborn individual efforts, not to a coherent export policy."
"That is why I am concerned about Mercosur, because farmers and the agro-industrial sector risk losses, not from direct trade but from indirect effects such as price disruptions in the EU single market. Until we have proper value-chain analyses, policies will remain based on mimicry and instinct. Farmers will continue to feel threatened. What can be done? Demand additional guarantees for farmers and develop economic diplomacy. Only then will we feel the benefits of free trade; otherwise, only the losses," the Government's Secretary General concluded.
Romania voted in favor of the EU-Mercosur agreement covering Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, after negotiating additional safeguards for Romanian and European producers, especially in agriculture, President Nicusor Dan said on Friday.
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