MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Mujica meets Lula da Silva to consider bilateral and regional integration

The Uruguayan president’s second trip overseas

Increasing trade, bilateral and regional integration dominate Monday’s agenda for the meeting in Brasilia between President Lula da Silva and Uruguayan leader Jose Mujica.

“Presidents will discuss the strengthening of the ample bilateral agenda, emphasizing in intensifying commerce and investments, productive integration and the necessary measures to ensure the execution of priority infrastructure works”, said a release from the Brazilian Foreign Affairs ministry.

This will be Mujica’s first visit to Brazil as Uruguayan president since taking office last March first. Other issues include “grid interconnection, railways network integration, construction of a new border bridge and fluvial interconnection”, adds the release.

The creation of a bilateral commission to coordinate productive integration actions is also scheduled under the guidance of both Foreign Affairs ministries. The commission will also have representatives from the different ministries and government offices involved in issues such as industry, energy, foreign trade, agriculture and livestock, science and technology, public works and transport.

As to the regional agenda, Lula da Silva and Mujica will be addressing the strengthening of Mercosur, cooperation in the framework of Unasur, Union of South American Nations, and the “exchange of ideas on the political and economic context of the region as well as both countries cooperation in multilateral forums and the Haiti peace mission”.

Bilateral trade reached 2.6 billion US dollars in 2009, with Brazilian exports totalling 1.36 billion. Brazil is Uruguay’s main trade partner.

Lula da Silva and Mujica have been personal friends for several years: the Brazilian president as former union leader and his Uruguayan peer as a former urban guerrilla commander who spent years in jail.

This is President Mujica’s second trip overseas; the first was to Chile for the inauguration ceremony of President Sebastian Piñera last March 11. From Santiago de Chile he travelled to Cochabamba where he was received by Bolivian president Evo Morales, also a long time friend of the Uruguayan leader.