“Mexico is a key player: a G20 countrya demographic, economic and geopolitical giant, which acts as a bridge between North America, Latin America and Europe. “Strengthening this role is essential,” Javi López, vice president of the European Parliament, tells DW.
That’s why, “The modernized Global Agreement is not only a great economic opportunity, but also a great instrument of multilateralism, cooperation in areas such as climate changegender equality or the fight against organized crime,” comments Javi López, permanent rapporteur of the agreement in the European Parliament. With just one month left of its planned signature, the partners are preparing the stage: a summit between the European Union and Mexico, where the new agreement would be sealed.
Long journey of the Global Agreement
It is worth remembering that, in 2016, it was decided to revamp an agreement that had been in operation for ten years. According to official information, one of its fruits is that the EU is Mexico’s third trading partner after the United States and China (according to 2024 figures).
The modernized text was completed and signed, in principle, in April 2020but it ran aground due to political ups and downs and technical issues. The tariff war announced by the second Trump Administration in January 2025 unexpectedly accelerated its completion.
To the signing in the Aztec capital, in a few weeks, will follow the entry into force of a treaty that liberalizes marketed products by ninety 9%, which secures the supply chains of fundamental raw materials and that promotes European investment in sectors such as electromobility, the pharmaceutical industry and infrastructure. It also opens the door for European companies to be able, on equal terms with national ones, to access government contracts at the federal and subnational levels.
Key political moment
“The signing comes at a key political moment. On the one hand, the EU is reorganizing its trade policy, placing the green and digital transition as key. For the EU it is not merely a trade agreement, but rather a key piece to reduce its vulnerabilities and dependence – for example, energy – on Russia,” Paula Saucedo, head of advocacy for the German Coordination for Human Rights in Mexico, tells DW from Berlin.
“For Mexico, with the trade conflicts with the United States, the EU represents a more stable partner in terms of supply and markets,” he adds.
Trade, raw materials, protected denominations
It must be said that Mexico is the second Latin American market for EU agricultural products. Now, an increase in its exports of pork, dairy, chocolate, wine and pasta is expected.
It is also worth highlighting that the agreement protects 568 European and 200 Mexican denominations of origin from counterfeiting. Among the latter, there are tequila and mezcal. On the other hand, the new global agreement opens the door to the EU to critical raw materials such as fluorspar, antimony, copper, zinc and lead.
So, does everyone win? “No, we do not believe it is a uncover-uncover complete”responds Paula Saucedo. “It does open investment opportunities, but it positions Mexico as a supplier of raw materials. We know that extractivism brings with it environmental problems and serious impacts on populations and environmental defenders,” he highlights.
Skepticism after thirty years of experience
In this regard, the modernized agreement explicitly speaks of a firm commitment to human rights, the environment, democracy and the rule of law; also joint efforts against international organized crime and corruption.
However, “I honestly don’t have too much hope for the modernization of the Global Agreement,” Manuel Pérez-Rocha, a researcher at the Institute for Coverage Research (IPS) in Washington, told DW.
“We have been trying to influence these processes for more than twenty-six years, but it has not been possible for the agreement itself to prevent situations such as the right of the Atoyac River: Many companies responsible for toxic discharges are European, particularly German. If there are no clear mechanisms, statements of good will remain just that,” Pérez-Rocha emphasizes.
He himself participated, in 2001, in the first dialogue forum between European civil society, the Mexican Government and the European Commission. In a recent article, published by the Heinrich Böll Foundation of Mexico, the researcher details negative impacts of European business activity.
On the other hand, “The seriousness of the EU gaining access to public procurement at the state and municipal level, pricks the capacity of local governments to promote the local economy and benefit national companies, generally much weaker than European ones,” says Pérez-Rocha.
The IPS researcher also expresses his concern about investment protection mechanisms that would allow bypassing national jurisdiction and going directly to supranational courts.
An agreement to monitor and care
“We understand its importance at the right geopolitical moment. Our question is, however, what are its costs and who does this increase in trade and investment benefit?”says human rights defender Paula Saucedo. “We are going to insist that the agreement provides for a National Consultative Committee and that we want to participate as civil society to monitor its implementation and coherence,” he emphasizes.
On the European side, “Today we are seeing how trade and supply chains are used as weapons; how interdependencies that we previously believed to be positive become tools of pressure and coercion,” says European parliamentarian Javi López. “That is why it is so important to strengthen predictable trade relations with reliable partners like Mexico, a global giant. For Europe this relationship is of considerable importance and we must take special care of it,” he concludes.
