Summit in Paraguay formalizes Bolivia’s entry into Mercosur

Bolivia was incorporated as a full member of Mercosur during the summit that began this Monday (8 July 2024) in Asunción, Paraguay.

The President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), is expected to speak to the press after the meeting, still this Monday (8th July), before heading to Bolivia, where he is expected to reiterate his support for President Luiz Arce.

Meeting of Chancellors

On Sunday (7.Jul), after a meeting between Mercosur chancellors, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauro Vieira, stated that “democracy won”commenting on the failed coup attempt in Bolivia. In La Paz, Lula is expected to reinforce this message.

Another notable feature of this Mercosur summit is the absence of Argentine President Javier Milei (La Libertad Avanza, right-wing), who decided last week that he would not attend the meeting. This is the first time that a head of state has not attended the bloc’s summit, according to the Itamaraty.

Among the events that were highlighted during Paraguay’s presidency, the foreign ministers indicated, after the meeting on Sunday (7 July), the signing of an agreement with Singapore, which interrupted a decade-long hiatus in understandings to expand access of the bloc’s products to new regions.

Despite Milei’s absence, Argentina’s Chancellor, Diana Mondino, reaffirmed her country’s membership in Mercosur, which she highlighted as the main destination for foreign sales and one of the first stops in the internationalization process of Argentine companies.

Uruguayan Foreign Minister Omar Paganini, in turn, congratulated Paraguay for opening negotiations for Mercosur agreements with the United Arab Emirates. He indicated what the platinum country’s focus could be during its pro tempore presidency of Mercosur.

“We are recognizing that we are far from a free trade zone, not necessarily in terms of tariff elimination, but in terms of administrative, financial, exchange rate or any other type of measures”said Paganini.

With information from Brazil Agency.