MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina-Brazil joint position

Argentina and Brazil coincided in the need to strengthen Mercosur's negotiation capacity and privilege the contents of the Americas Free Trade Association, AFTA, rather than the timetable for the ambitious United States initiative.

During a short visit to Buenos Aires Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs Celso Lafer met with President De la Rúa and held long conferences with his counterpart Adalberto Rodríguez Giavarini.

In a press conference Mr. Lafer said that Argentina and Brazil have a common position regarding AFTA, and announced Brazilian president Fernando Cardoso will be visiting Argentina next April, before the Quebec presidential summit. In Quebec all 34 heads of government and state of the Americas, but Cuba, will be meeting with President George W. Bush for the first time.

"Mercosur is the convenient tool for international negotiations", added Mr. Rodríguez Giavarini, reinforcing the impression that Foreign Affairs and not the Economy Ministry, will set the pace for the AFTA-Mercosur talks, similarly to Brazil. However regarding Cuba and the Canadian ban of Brazilian beef, both officials were very diplomatically polite.Mr. Lafer said Brazil will privilege its traditional stance, abstention, although "we very much understand Argentine sensitivity" regarding the "Cuban escalade and Mr. Castro's opinions". Regarding the Canadian ban on Brazilian beef, Mr. Lafer said Brazil's aspiration was a convergence of Mercosur's animal and plant sanitary conditions.

Mr. Rodríguez Giavarini retorted that "we feel all discriminations are unfair", and added that a Nafta sanitary mission was expected in Argentina.

Canada banned Brazilian beef alleging live cattle imports from Britain in the early nineties. However Brazilians argue it's a retaliation for the on going litigation between both countries in the passenger aircraft industry. Canada and Brazil accuse each other of covert subsidies and sales promotion incentives contrary to WTO regulations.