At an event held in Asunción on Monday (18.6.2018), within the framework of the Summit of Presidents, Uruguay assumed the Pro Tempore Presidency of Mercosur for the next semester.
In his speech to the other foreign ministers of the bloc, Uruguayan foreign minister Rodolfo Nin Novoa summarized the axes of the PPTU (Pro Tempore Presidency of Uruguay).
Key points of the speech
1) concrete actions for the improvement of the intra-zone trade and the development of the customs union.
2) elimination of double charging of the common external tariff and progress towards effective free circulation of goods and services.
3) reform and continuity of the Financial Fund for the Development of the Plata Basin (FONPLATA), “which has proven to be one of the most efficient instruments of MERCOSUR and one of those that has contributed most to the physical integration of the region.”
4) Priority will be given to the development of international cooperation by promoting projects aligned with the Goals of Sustainable development (SDG) and the economic-trade agenda of MERCOSUR.
5) In terms of external relations, during the PPTU the aim will be to consolidate the negotiation processes in progress, such as the launching of negotiators with Singapore, Indonesia, and eventually other ASEAN stakeholders.
6) “Given the importance that Uruguay assigns to China As a trading partner, we will try to resume contacts between MERCOSUR and China.
The handover ceremony took place on Sunday (17.6.2018), when Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes formally handed over the position to Tabaré Vazquez, President of Uruguay.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uruguay
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