Tension in Mercosur: Uruguay and China move forward with bilateral agreement and Paraguay and Chile negotiate economic pact

Uruguay started work before negotiating a possible Free trade treaty (CCM) with China, as announced Tuesday by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the South American country, Francisco Bustillo.

Speaking to the press after meeting the President, Luis Lacalle Pou, in the executive tower, seat of the Uruguayan government, Bustillo indicated that the ambassador has been appointed Fernando Lopez Fabregat and the economist Juan Labraga respectively coordinator and deputy coordinator of the work team.

This negotiating team of the FTA feasibility study, supervised by the Chancellor himself and the Minister of Economy and Finance, Azucena Arbeleche, He started “To work a few days ago”, explained the head of external relations.

The feasibility study identifies “areas and thematic” And it’s “the context in which it will be negotiated“, Detailed Bustillo, who added that”Consultations with the various Chambers and Ministries will begin at any time, depending on the corresponding theme.”.

As explained by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Uruguay and China have agreed to advance the feasibility study before the end of the year to start the second step, it would be “That of the negotiations proper.

The past September 7, Lacalle Pou has made public that Uruguay and China intend to advance an agreement of these characteristics, despite the position of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) of not allow countries to negotiate agreements outside the bloc.

“This Government has expressed its intention to advance towards the world, to advance towards the world with all the partners of Mercosur., but at the same time and this was done explicitly, if it was not possible to move forward together, Uruguay would try to do it, ”declared the Uruguayan president at the time.

China is the main export market of the South American country, with 26.21% of the volume invoiced in August, according to the last monthly foreign trade report of the Union of Exporters of Uruguay.

Paraguay and Chile move forward in economic deal

The Paraguayan President, Mario Abdo Benítez, and its Chilean counterpart, Sebastien Piñera, closed an official meeting on Tuesday during which they underlined the willingness of their governments to move forward in a Economic agreement aimed at signing a free trade agreement, in addition to strengthening its relationship with regional strategic connectivity projects.

The two leaders appeared before the media outside the government palace, in Hypothesis, after a working meeting described as “very fertile“By Piñera, who ends in Paraguay the regional tour which also led him through Colombia and Uruguay.

In this sense, Piñera invited Abdo Benítez to visit Chile to sign the economic implementation agreement. that could happen this year, in the face of this free trade agreement.

Abdo Benítez, on the same point, said his government hopes to move forward in “shortly after the signing of the complementary economic agreement on which we are working between the two governments”. “And what fruit of this agreement we can achieve with the signing of a Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Paraguay and Chile to further facilitate integration and trade processes between the two countries, ”he said.

Paraguayan President, Conservative Party Colorado Day, framed the initiative in the free trade agreements which Chile with other Mercosur countries, such as Brazil and Argentina.

The heads of state also highlighted Chile’s offer to Paraguay to participate as a founding member of the Humboldt project, for the development of an optical submarine cable that will link South America to Asia-Pacific.

They also discussed bilateral trade relations through free zones, with the possibility that Paraguay, which has a deposit in Antofagasta, provide Chile with a free zone in the river port of Villeta, on the outskirts of Hypothesis.

Abdo Benítez also thanked Piñera for his donation 100,000 vaccines against the Covid that the Chilean President announced this morning by receiving the National Order of Merit at the rank of “Mariscal Francisco Solano López Necklace”, the highest honor awarded by Paraguay.

Likewise, the two heads of state agreed to defend in the regional forums the same values ​​of defense of democracy and the human rights, and a mutual friendship of two centuries.

(With information from EFE)

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