Patriots for Europe group protests against the EU-Mercosur deal in Strasbourg
Members of the Patriots for Europe group protested against the EU–Mercosur trade agreement in Strasbourg on Tuesday, as Fidesz MEP Kinga Gál sharply criticized the European Commission for harming European farmers and announced that French MEP Laurent Castillo had left the European People’s Party to join the Patriots faction.
Fidesz MEP and Vice-Chair of the Patriots for Europe group Kinga Gál announced that Laurent Castillo from the French delegation of the European People’s Party (EPP) would be joining the Patriots faction, citing the EPP’s position on Mercosur and the resulting motion of no confidence as reasons for his decision. MEP Kinga Gál wrote on her social media page:
French MEP Laurent Castillo has joined us from the European People’s Party because he considered his former group’s position on European Commission policy, particularly with regard to the Mercosur agreement, to be untenable,
she wrote in a Facebook post.
“In light of this, there was no question that he would join the Patriots, the only real opposition in Brussels. Welcome aboard!”
She stated that the Patriots are pleased about this because it strengthens the position that the European Commission’s situation is untenable, and the signing of the Mercosur agreement was the last straw. The faction thus expands to 86 members.
| MEP Laurent Castillo (@PrLCastillo) breaks with the EPP and joins Patriots for Europe!
He refuses the Von der Leyen agenda and the Mercosur deal that betrays our farmers. Like thousands of Europeans every day, he chooses resistance.
We are growing. We are fighting. We are… pic.twitter.com/aMa1VqHkJN
— Patriots for Europe (@PatriotsEP) January 20, 2026
Politician Kinga Gál emphasized that
the European Commission is not only making serious mistakes in the Mercosur case, but also in providing further unconditional financial support to Ukraine.
According to the politician, the sums of money planned to be sent to Ukraine will indebt the future of the whole of Europe, even for generations to come.
Via Facebook, Magyar Nemzet; Featured photo: Facebook/Patriots for Europe
The post French Mep Defects From Manfred Weber’s EPP to Join Orbán’s Patriots for Europe appeared first on Hungary Today.
