French Farmers Flood Paris with Tractors in Protest Against EU–Mercosur Trade Deal

French farmers drove dozens of tractors into central Paris on Thursday night, blockading key landmarks and transport routes in a dramatic protest against a controversial trade agreement between the European Union and South America’s Mercosur bloc, as well as against domestic agricultural policies.

The demonstration, organized by the Rural Coordination farmers’ union, saw tractors lining up near the Arc de Triomphe and along the banks of the River Seine beneath the Eiffel Tower, despite a strict police ban on agricultural vehicles entering the capital. Several access points to the city’s ring road and metro stations were temporarily blocked, causing significant disruption.

Farmers say the planned EU–Mercosur free trade agreement threatens their livelihoods by opening European markets to cheaper agricultural imports from South America, which they argue are produced under lower environmental and health standards.

“Our feeling ranges between anger and despair,” said Stéphane Pelletier, vice president of the union in the central French town of Vienne, speaking to Reuters. “We feel abandoned by the government in the face of Mercosur. We are being left to compete with an Airbus or a space shuttle.”

The protests come just days after the European Commission proposed allocating €45 billion in EU funding for farmers and agreed to reduce import tariffs on certain fertilizers, moves aimed at persuading hesitant member states to back the trade deal.

While France has expressed strong reservations, the agreement enjoys the support of countries including Germany and Spain, and Italy is also believed to be leaning in favor. This would give the European Commission enough votes to approve the deal regardless of France’s position. A vote is expected on Friday.

In addition to trade concerns, French farmers are also protesting the government’s handling of a recent outbreak of highly contagious lumpy skin disease affecting cattle. Authorities have ordered the mass culling of infected herds, a policy farmers oppose, calling instead for widespread vaccination.

The tractor protests underscore mounting tensions between European policymakers and farming communities, who argue they are being squeezed between global trade liberalization and increasingly strict domestic regulations.