During the last three years, multiple crises have shown the vital importance of resilient supply chains, whose strength depends on well-established trade relationships, especially between like-minded partners, like Europe, Brazil, and Argentina are. The recent trip of the European Commission president Von der Leyen to Latin America, especially to Brazil and Argentina, demonstrated the importance of strengthening relations with key partners in the region, the European Apparel and Textile Confederation (EURATEX), Brazilian Textile and Apparel Industry Association (ABIT), and Federacion Argentina De Industrias Textiles Fadit (FITA) said in a letter.

The organisations expressed their satisfaction with the discussions taking place at the highest political level regarding the need to finalise the EU-Mercosur agreement. The agreement fosters the common objectives of promoting free and fair trade, while creating mechanisms and platforms for cooperation on various topics of global importance, such as globalisation and the promotion of diversified supply chains. It is especially essential for the textile and clothing sector, which has one of the most complex supply chains worldwide.

The EU-Mercosur FTA also allows the contracting parties to jointly tackle global sustainability issues, such as climate change, forest preservation, and social and labour rights. The organisations reiterated their belief that the EU-Mercosur agreement creates higher standards of environmental preservation and rainforests protection, ensuring that the pledges taken in the context of the Paris Agreement will be fulfilled.

“Our sector supplies not only the creative and fashion industry, it also provides our society with essential products that enable the work in safe conditions for medical personnel, firefighters, and police forces. In addition, textiles are used in many other sectors, such as automotive, building, aviation, and shipbuilding, thus ensuring that all these products comply with the highest technological and safety standards,” the associations said in the letter.

EURATEX, ABIT, and FITA also welcomed the possibility of intensifying cooperation between countries to strengthen the sustainable development of the sector. They said that the opportunity to work on such issues and find joint solutions cannot be ignored. They also expressed confidence that with the commitment and continued effort of both sides of the Atlantic the EU-Mercosur agreement can be ratified by all the contracting parties by the end of 2023.

The European, Brazilian, and Argentinian textiles manufacturers reiterated their strong support for the initiative and called on all the contracting parties to take the necessary steps to facilitate the finalisation of the agreement.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)