It's time to say NO to the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement!
Today, the Dutch Parliament's Commission on Foreign Trade and Cooperation for Development is discussing the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. Despite repeated legislative motions passed by a large, multi-party majority, rejecting this agreement harmful to Mercosur and EU countries, the Dutch government has not yet expressed a clear rejection to the European Council.
For years, Both ENDS' has opposed the EU-Mercosur agreement, as it will increase deforestation and environmental crimes in Mercosur countries and will erode existing environmental regulations, such as the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). It is a harmful agreement for workers, indigenous peoples and peasants on both sides of the Atlantic. It will undermine labour standards, foster the eviction of communities from their territories and increase unfair competition for European farmers. This agreement will also attempt against consumer's rights, as agribusinesses will have an expedite way to get agricultural products treated with banned agrochemicals banned in the EU.
Together with the rest of the members of the Handel Anders! Coalition– consisting of farmers’ as well as environmental organizations and labour unions - , we will reiterate today to the members of the Committee for Foreign Trade our rejection of this treaty, and will support them in the demand for the Dutch Government to adopt a position consistent with the majority opinion of the Parliament: reject this harmful trade agreement and build a new trade policy that benefits the planet and the peoples of Mercosur and the EU.
Stop EU-Mercosur! Reclaim trade policy for development and the environment.
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Dossier /International trade and investment with respect for people and planet
The network of international trade and investment treaties is large and complex. The Netherlands alone has signed more than 70 bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and is party to the trade and investment agreements concluded by the EU, like the EU-Mercosur and EU-Indonesia trade deals.
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Dossier /Trade agreements
International trade agreements often have far-reaching consequences not only for the economy of a country, but also for people and the environment. It is primarily the most vulnerable groups who suffer most from these agreements.
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News / 29 September 2026Summary - Both ENDS complaint under the EU-New Zealand trade agreement
On 29 September 2026, Both ENDS lodged the first complaint on climate grounds with the European Commission's Single Entry Point. It asks the Commission to examine whether Aotearoa New Zealand has broken two promises both sides made in the EU-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement: not to weaken or set aside environmental laws in order to encourage trade or investment, and to effectively implement the Paris Agreement.
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Publication / 29 September 2026
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News / 29 September 2026Q&A: New Zealand's climate rollback and the EU trade agreement
On 29 September 2026 / 30 September in Aotearoa New Zealand, Both ENDS lodged a complaint with the European Commission under the EU-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement. These are the questions we are asked most often, and our answers. The complaint summary, the case explainer and the key public sources are linked at the end of this page.
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Press release / 29 September 2026New Zealand faces its first climate complaint under EU trade rules
UTRECHT / WELLINGTON, 29 September 2026 /30 September in Aotearoa New Zealand
Both ENDS, a Dutch environmental justice organisation, has lodged a formal complaint with the European Commission arguing that New Zealand has broken the climate promises it made in its free trade agreement with the European Union. It is the first complaint on environmental and climate grounds under the Commission's Single Entry Point, the mechanism that lets civil society ask the EU to enforce the sustainability commitments in its trade agreements.
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News / 14 April 2026New report: Phasing out ISDS in the Netherlands: a roadmap
Today, Both ENDS and SOMO are publishing the report Phasing out ISDS in the Netherlands: a roadmap. In the report, we highlight the Netherlands’ role in the ISDS system and offer practical guidance on phasing out ISDS.
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Dossier /Rights for People, Rules for Corporations – Stop ISDS!
Indigenous communities in Paraguay saw their attempts to regain their ancestral lands thwarted by German investors. In Indonesia, US-based mining companies succeeded to roll back new laws that were meant to boost the country’s economic development and protect its forests. This is the level of impact that investment treaties can have on social, environmental and economic development and rights. Why? Because of the ‘Investor-to-State Dispute Settlement’ clauses that are included in many such treaties.
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News / 26 March 2026New project: Climate Accountability in EU Trade
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News / 22 January 2026Shell files new arbitration against the Netherlands over Groningen gas field closure
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Blog / 25 November 2025COP30 shows why dismantling ISDS is essential for real climate action
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News / 5 November 2025Another ISDS claim hits the Netherlands: Petrogas sues over solidarity contribution and royalty regulations
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Publication / 16 October 2025
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Publication / 16 October 2025
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News / 6 October 2025From Entebbe to Accra: civil society is rewriting the rules of investment
By Fernando Hernández Espino and Bart-Jaap Verbeek
Almost a year after African civil society gathered in Uganda to adopt the Entebbe Declaration, the call to transform international investment governance continues to gain strength. From the 6th to the 9th of October, over 50 civil society organisations from across West Africa, including from Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Gambia, Sierra Leone, as well as from Kenya and Latin America, are convening in Accra to deepen and operationalise the Declaration’s vision.
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News / 23 September 2025With the undemocratic splitting of the EU-Mercosur deal, Europe is missing the chance to lead on fair trade
Recently, many newspapers have written about Brussels’ rush to finalize the trade agreement between the EU and the South American Mercosur countries. According to the European Commission, national parliaments do not need to approve it because the trade part and the “political” part have been separated. This “splitting” means that the trade part can be approved as an EU-only decision by the European Council and the European Parliament, while national parliaments are sidelined and the political-cooperation part is postponed. Both ENDS and its partners are deeply concerned and are calling on the Dutch government to vote against this outdated agreement.
