The bloc closed a negotiation with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which will result in an increase in trade between the two groups of countries.
Mercosur took new steps to expand markets amid the trade war of the United States, during the summit held in Buenos Aires this Thursday, marked by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's visit to his political ally, former President Cristina Kirchner, who is under house arrest for corruption.
The bloc closed a negotiation with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) comprising Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, which will result in an increase in trade between the two groups of countries.
During the summit, steps were discussed to advance trade agreements with the United Arab Emirates and Canada, update agreements with Colombia and Ecuador, Panama and the Dominican Republic, and progress in regional gas integration. "It is time for Mercosur to look towards Asia," said President Lula.
"For Brazil, the safe place is Mercosur," added Lula when receiving the pro tempore presidency from his Argentine counterpart Javier Milei, who urged the bloc for greater openness and again threatened to advance unilaterally.
The Argentine, who sees Mercosur as a corset for his ambitions for a free trade agreement with the United States, called for "more freedom urgently" to negotiate.
"We will embark on the path of freedom and we will do it accompanied or alone because Argentina cannot wait," warned Milei and advocated for the bloc to advance in this direction during the next semester.
"But if this is not possible and the partners of the bloc prefer to resist, persist in a path that has not worked for us, then we will have to insist on relaxing the conditions of the society that unites us," he said.
For his part, Lula promised that under his presidency the bloc will aim to "strengthen inter-bloc trade with external partners" and to finalize the trade agreement with the European Union.
Climate change, energy transition, the fight against organized crime, and the promotion of technological development will be the main objectives of Mercosur during the next semester, he explained.
"It is a moment of serious turbulence for multilateralism, the support of Mercosur and all of South America will be essential," said Lula.
In turn, the President of Uruguay, Yamandú Orsi, considered that "it is already time to resume negotiations with relevant partners such as South Korea and Canada."
Uruguay has also insisted for decades on a relaxation of the bloc's rules, which prevent agreements with third countries without the consent of all partners.
The President of Paraguay, Santiago Peña, was critical. "I am not satisfied with the progress we have made so far, we are always saying that we celebrate the progress, but we do not end up realizing it," he stated.
"Energy integration is running out. It is running out in the use of that energy and we need to think about new sources, and there I celebrate that we are making progress in understanding agreements to build a pipeline that can transport the enormous amounts of gas that Argentina currently has and that can, of course, reach Paraguay and through Paraguay to Brazil," said Peña.
Visit to Kirchner
The summit was marked by the announced visit of President Lula to his political ally Cristina Kirchner, who is under house arrest in Buenos Aires, which took place shortly after noon.
The visit was authorized by the court that sentenced the former president (2007-2015) to six years in prison for corruption and perpetual political disqualification.
The meeting adds discomfort to the tense relationship between President Lula and his Argentine counterpart, the ultraliberal Milei, with whom he does not have a bilateral meeting scheduled before leaving the Argentine capital this Thursday.
This is Lula's first visit to Argentina since Milei took office in December 2023.
The Brazilian, on the other hand, did share a working breakfast this Thursday with his Paraguayan counterpart, Santiago Peña.
"It was a frank and productive conversation about the central issues of the agenda that unites Paraguay and Brazil," reported the Paraguayan president on X.
Milei, a right-wing ultraliberal who advocates for the destruction of the state, is a fervent admirer of the American Donald Trump. In the past, he labeled Lula as a "thief" and "corrupt," insults that the Brazilian dismissed as "nonsense."
#NFPWatch #BTCReclaims110K #TrumpVsMusk #NextCryptoETFs? #Dollarcostaverage