I'm John Batchel. This is the New World Report with Professor Evan Ellis of the U.S. Army War College.

Evan and I searched for good news, and we've got some, the news from Europe.

The European Parliament has voted to refer the long negotiated 27 years.

EU-Mercasur trade agreement to the EU's highest court, a move that could delay a final decision on the pact for at least a year.

It's all right. They've waited 27. In a closely split vote, the members of the European Parliament

back to resolution requesting a legal opinion from the Court of Justice. Why is this? Because

individual states must approve of the Mercos Ordeal negotiated for 27 years.

And there are loud voices from the farmers of southern France, for example, expecting to win

the next national election, or from farmers across the landscape who have these beautiful deer tractors

that tie up traffic in the center of town

whenever they're unhappy.

In other words, the farm lobby in Europe

is not large like the American farm lobby,

but it is extremely vocal.

Professor, Mercosur is good news.

It's a combination of Latin American countries with food to sell, wonderful food to sell, and Europe buying it. But may I say that there's momentum for this deal or after 27 years are they ready to wait another 30?

It certainly is an interesting deal, John, and I am cautiously optimistic that it may now be going

through.

As you pointed out, there are a number of different politically well-entrenched threatened

actors, certainly within Europe, French farmers and others who fear the invasion of relatively competitive crops, you know, French farmers and others who feared the invasion of relatively competitive

crops, you know, agricultural exports from Argentina and from Brazil were instrumental in

blocking things on that side. But I think there's been a collective sense with the dramatic

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