Mercosur Foreign Ministers met this Wednesday afternoon (04.12.2019) in Bento Gonçalves, Rio Grande do Sul, during a preparatory meeting for the 55th Summit of Heads of State and Associated States of Mercosur, which will take place tomorrow in the same city. Meetings of economic ministers and central bank presidents of the bloc's countries are also planned.
Today's meeting is part of the 55th Ordinary Meeting of the Common Market Council (CMC) at ministerial level and will close in the evening with a statement by Foreign Minister Ernesto Araújo.
The Vale dos Vinhedos Summit brings to a close Brazil's six-month presidency of Mercosur. During the summit, the pro tempore presidency will be transferred to Paraguay. During the Brazilian presidency, Mercosur reaffirmed its full commitment to democratic values and reinforced its "original vocation for open regionalism (to other economic blocs) and sought to adopt a pragmatic approach, with concrete results for citizens," according to the Secretary of State for Bilateral and Regional Negotiations in the Americas, Ambassador Pedro Miguel da Costa e Silva.
«The holding of this summit is a source of pride, since during the Brazilian presidency, Mercosur reflected an open agenda in defense of democracy., he said. According to Costa e Silva, Mercosur today is a "a mirror of the work that Brazil is doing internally."
Taking stock of the achievements made during the period in which Brazil led the pro tempore presidency of the bloc, the ambassador highlighted the completion in August of the agreement with the European Union and also with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which includes Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. The ambassador said that the intense foreign agenda also included talks with Canada, Singapore, Lebanon and South Korea, dialogues with Vietnam and Indonesia and, at the regional level, with Colombia and the Pacific Alliance.
Common External Tariff
In the economic and commercial area, the semester's work covered topics such as the Common External Tariff (CET), trade facilitation, geographical indications, financial services, technical regulations, the digital agenda and private sector participation.
The ambassador said that Mercosur has also made progress in border cooperation, consumer protection, and food and nutritional security. At the institutional level, the Brazilian presidency continued Mercosur's efforts to reduce costs and cut bureaucracy.
During the summit, there will be presidential statements on sustainable development, tourism and the fight against transnational illicit acts and corruption.
In 2018, Brazil exported US$20.83 billion to Mercosur and imported US$13.37 billion, with a surplus of US$7.46 billion.
#Now The meeting of Foreign Ministers of the @mercosur. Brazil takes stock of its achievements as president.
Among which the closing of negotiations with @EFTAsecretariat https://t.co/wirQmRotzv#WeAreMercosur ✨ pic.twitter.com/9nubTQmkud
—MERCOSUR (@mercosur) December 4, 2019
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