MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Lagos calls for dialogue with the US and admits disappointment with Mercosur
Former Chilean president Ricardo Lagos Former Chilean president Ricardo Lagos called for a closer dialogue between Latinamerica and Washington while de-mystifying the alleged negative influence of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez in the region. He also admitted he expected “much more from Mercosur”.
“We should have a more direct dialogue with United States”, Lagos was quoted in the Friday edition of the Argentine newspaper Crónica.
Lagos suggested as an alternative a “coordination instance with Washington” in the framework of the Group of Rio which brings together 22 Latinamerican countries.
The former president (2000/2006) said the US already has fluid dialogues with Europe, China and different regions of the world and considered “crucial” and “very useful” a similar discussion space with Latinamerica.
This way “we can tell the US what’s going to happen with the climate change issue, with migration or with the drugs trade”.
Regarding the alleged harmful influence for Latinamerica from President Chavez, Lagos said that the role played by the Venezuela leader “is very much exaggerated”. He has been legitimately elected and confirmed several times, nevertheless “one should not get distracted by his rhetoric”.
Further on Lagos said that Mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) “has not responded as expected to the challenges faced”.
“I always thought that Mercosur, with a founding principle sustained on an organic common external tariff, should have improved with a better coordination of economic policies”, underlined Lagos.
Chile is an associate member of Mercosur and never accepted joining the South American trade block because it has a more open and liberal economy and has slashed tariffs to a minimum level.
Finally he argued that if Mercosur is to become effective, “it must have shared elements of economic policy in which all members believe or agree”.
This is particularly true since Brazil is pushing for trade liberalization and is willing to further open its home market to outside competition, while Argentina has a more conservative approach, limiting imports and promoting local industries behind protection mechanisms allegedly to create jobs.
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Read all comments“This is particularly true since Brazil is pushing for trade liberalization and is willing to further open its home market to outside competition, while Argentina has a more conservative approach”
Nov 21st, 2009 - 07:02 am 0Really? Argentina has a more “conservative” approach?
Nonsense, and stop with PC language. It's a “Populist” approach...in other words, an Idiotic approach.
I bet Mercopress in the hands of Argentines. Good lord.
I don´t understand what you are saying?? are you talking about proteccionism??
Nov 21st, 2009 - 11:20 am 0hey, look Malvinas; they have all kinds of protecctions, most of them alienated. Social protecction, political protection, economic protection, communicational protection, inmigrational, commercial, educational, mental. So much protection that they don´t live in modern world. I don´t understand why they don´t want to live in a city; Stanley without most of that protections should be another city of south atlantic & patagonia.
The only thing they don´t protect is enviroment; foreign vessels are overfishing every year for 100 millon people. That´s not fair for the region.
In EU you have a shameful situation, the worst case of protecctionism in modern world; agricultural subsidies. Why european farmers can´t compite with south americans farmers?? You are first world and we are third; shame on you.
Hey Gordon, you want your deficit cut?? cut agric subs.
It´s easy, UK is developed they protect farmers, we are developing and we protect industry, brazil is an industrial giant for us, we can´t compite as equals.
Billy, I totally agree with you. US and UE can't say anything until they stop their subsides to the agriculture. Regarding what Lagos said, I personally wouldn't like to live under the chilean model, I've been in pucon, one of the most beautifull cities of chile and you know what, everything depens on private sector, so they didn't have gas in their houses due to lack of investment. I also agree with you about the idiot who wrote first, whom I say Mercopress is in islanders hands. They are part of the falkland propaganda.
Nov 22nd, 2009 - 02:47 am 0Cheers
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