Buenos Aires-. Today, Argentine President Alberto Fernandez will host the Mercosur Summit of Heads of State, where he will transfer the baton to Brazil for the next six months.
With a mass marked by profound differences between the many founding countries, Fernandez will chair the virtual appointment of the Casa Rosada Bicentennial Museum, which will be attended by the leaders of Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay and many special guests.
30 years after its creation and in the midst of the Covid-19 virus that has particularly affected many of these countries, issues such as tariffs and agreements with third countries have found cracks within the alliance as Argentina played in these six months of the interim presidency. An important role with integration calls.
With hostile looks between Fernandez and Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil will be responsible for taking the reins of Mercosur for the next semester in a scenario looming more complex with greater tension within the bloc.
Exactly the day before, the Uruguayan government announced that it would negotiate trade agreements outside the Mercosur structure, a decision announced as the bloc’s partner countries’ foreign ministers tried unsuccessfully to reach agreements on lowering the common external tariff. .
In a virtual meeting attended by Bolivia, Argentine Foreign Minister Felipe Sola said yesterday that Argentina is convinced that Mercosur is undoubtedly the main platform from which to advance towards integration into global trade and that its consolidation and joint action are keys to achieving profitable listing.
In assessing the administration, the Argentine chief of diplomacy intended that during this last chapter the review of the Common Foreign Tariff, an important tool of common foreign and trade policy, was discussed in a very comprehensive manner.
During this time, Argentina worked to put together a larger unit, something that will be disrupted when Mercosur falls into Bolsonaro’s hands, according to analysts.
There are several outstanding issues, including the legal review of announced agreements with the European Union (EU) and the European Free Trade Association, as well as ongoing negotiations with Canada, South Korea, Singapore and Lebanon.
Working on differences and prioritizing consensus that Mercosur is the best platform for promoting openness abroad will be among the bloc’s challenges in the next six months.
Meme / may
“Award-winning alcohol trailblazer. Hipster-friendly internetaholic. Twitter ninja. Infuriatingly humble beer lover. Pop culture nerd.”