SOUTH KOREA PERSPECTIVE

Korea Times and Yonhap frame the EU-Mercosur entry into force within a broader geopolitical context: the EU signs a diversification deal on the same day Trump announces 25% tariffs on European cars, revealing the fragility of Brussels's trade strategy. The EU Parliament trade committee chair calls the US posture 'unacceptable' and 'unreliable' — while acknowledging the EU is honoring an agreement Washington is unilaterally breaching. For Seoul, observing the great power trade war from the outside, the EU-Mercosur deal looks less like a coherent strategy than a defensive reaction.