MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Tabaré Vázquez concerned about Mercosur's political volatility

Vázquez said the EU agreement should top the agenda during Mercosur's next summit.

Uruguayan President Tabaré Vázquez Tuesday said that there are many internal problems in the countries that make up Mercosur, but that he was also “confident” that the main achievement this year will be the free trade agreement with the European Union.

 He underlined that such an agreement should top the agenda during Mercosur's next summit.

European Union (EU) Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström had said on Monday in Madrid before Foreign Ministers of Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay and Brazil's Commerce Minister that she envisioned this agreement could be sealed during the World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting in Buenos Aires by the end of the year.

Vázquez also predicted every detail will be sorted out by next week at the latest for the opening of UPM's second pulp mill plant in Uruguay, although he admitted the initial idea was to have everything worked out by June 30. “Two days do not make much of a difference,” he said. Uruguay and UPM are now focused on insurance issues to move on with the project. UPM's first plant in Uruguay is located in Fray Bentos.