At the start of his tour of Europe, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uruguay, Francisco Bustillo, held a meeting this Monday (05.09.2022) with his counterpart from Spain, José Manuel Albares, the Uruguayan Foreign Ministry reported. The meeting “ He placed special emphasis on moving towards the signing of the Mercosur-European Union (EU) agreement"He said.
It should be remembered that Uruguay currently chairs Mercosur, a group also made up of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. In view of this, the Spanish minister reiterated his country's full support for this agreement, “an aspect that will be evident in the scheduled Spanish presidency of the EU in the second half of 2023.” “Thus, Spain intends to prioritize Latin America on the European agenda"He added.
Bustillo then held a meeting with the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism of Spain, María Reyes Maroto, with whom he reviewed the bilateral agenda on economic and commercial matters.
The authorities also stressed their support for the agreement between Mercosur and the European Union, in a geopolitical framework in which both regional blocs must strengthen themselves to effectively play a constructive role on the international stage. “To this end, Minister Reyes Maroto committed to hard work during the planned Spanish presidency of the EU, in the second half of 2023. She also expressed her interest in visiting Uruguay in the near future to strengthen ties,” the Foreign Ministry reported.
Bustillo will hold three meetings with senior European Union officials on Tuesday. He will then be received by the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell. He will also do the same with MEP Jordi Cañas, rapporteur for the Mercosur-European Union agreement in the European Parliament's Committee on International Trade (INTA Committee) and president of the Delegation for Relations with Mercosur (DMER).
The planned activities will continue with a meeting with the European Union Trade Commissioner, Valdis Dombrovskis.
The Association Agreement between Mercosur and the European Union was signed in 2019, after 20 years of negotiations, but it has not yet entered into force because it depends on legislative ratification by all those involved and there are European countries that doubt the environmental commitments of nations in the South American bloc.
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