"Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Saturday welcomed leaders and ministers from Mercosur countries at the Belmond Hotel in Foz do Iguacu, as the bloc opened talks on regional integration and trade cooperation. The meeting comes as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council chief Antonio Costa confirmed yet another delay in the signing of the Mercosur trade deal on Friday, following opposition from France and Italy - and violent protests from angry farmers in Brussels and right across the bloc. Footage filmed on Saturday shows Lula posing for an official photograph against the backdrop of the Iguazu Falls alongside Argentina's President Javier Milei, Uruguay's President Yamandu Orsi and Paraguay's President Santiago Pena. Earlier, the EU had argued that the agreement would help expand market access after being hit by US tariffs and reduce reliance on China by securing access to strategic raw materials.  Negotiated over roughly 25 years, the deal aims to boost EU exports of vehicles, machinery, wines and spirits, while allowing increased imports of beef, sugar, rice, honey and soy from Mercosur countries, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.  Reacting to the delay, Brazil's foreign minister said the agreement should not be viewed solely as an economic pact, but also as a social and cultural project designed to bring the regions closer together."