The Secretary General of the Latin American Integration Association (Aladi), Alejandro de la Peña, encouraged Mercosur and the Pacific Alliance on Tuesday (5.6.2018) to work towards greater convergence, since "there is no doubt" that it will help the entire region.
"There is no doubt that the rapprochement will have a positive impact on integration"Mercosur and the Pacific Alliance" have sufficient density to play the role that Germany and France played in the construction of the European Union," said Mexican diplomat Alejandro de la Peña at an event held in Brasilia.
Mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) and the Pacific Alliance (Chile, Peru, Colombia and Mexico) began a process of "rapprochement" more than two years ago, which was the subject of analysis in a seminar organized by the Brazilian Foreign Ministry.
According to De la Peña, this process "could be an additional boost for Aladi herself", which could even give"assistance"for this integration, by carrying out "technical studies" on the participating countries and their convergences.
The Mexican diplomat stressed that ALADI has "almost 40 years of experience and a collection of more than 150 registered agreements," which are signed by all Mercosur and Pacific Alliance countries as members of that organization.
He also pointed out that the Aladi's own founding treaty "It is already a model of convergence" and argued that "it would be a waste not to take advantage" of this framework to "revitalize" regional integration.
Cepal
The seminar was also attended by the ECLAC's deputy executive secretary, Argentine Mario Cimoli, who warned of the need for an approach between the two blocs that incorporates the "change" that the world is experiencing, even in trade, due to the accelerated technological revolution.
Cimoli said that the current context of "strong pressures on global trade" is not only a response to the protectionist policies of the United States, but also to ""frictions" generated by the technological change.
In this regard, he cited as an example the recent lawsuit filed by the European Union (EU) against China before the World Trade Organization (WTO) over the rules applied in that country regarding ownership and use of technologies.
"All this is much more than trade" and "is a consequence of technological changes," which "We still don't know how they will impact global value chains", said the ECLAC official, who pointed out that if Mercosur and the Alliance do not incorporate the issue into their agenda "they will repeat speeches that we have already heard a lot about."
Brazil
Brazilian Foreign Minister Aloysio Nunes, who cancelled his presence at the seminar because he is attending the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS), sent a message in which he praised the dialogue between the two blocs, especially "at a time when protectionist tendencies are gaining strength" in the world.
According to Nunes, "the rapprochement between Mercosur and the Pacific Alliance represents a invaluable contribution for an open and balanced trading system."
Source: Reuters
Aduana News is the first Argentine customs newspaper to launch its digital version. With 20 years of experience, its publications and initiatives aim to provide the most relevant knowledge on customs issues in order to contribute to safe trade in the region.
