MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Mercosur-China talks held in Montevideo

“Uruguay has been a promoter of this type of dialogue,” Albertoni stressed

Deputy Foreign Minister Nicolás Albertoni met Monday with his Chinese colleague Hua Chunying in Montevideo as the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) under Uruguay's rotating presidency kept pushing for a Free Trade Agreement with the Asian giant. Also present were dignitaries from the other members of the regional bloc as well as Beijing's Ambassador Huang Yazhong.

Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou was the one who suggested resuming talks to deepen ties through the mechanism created in 2018, it was explained. While Uruguay would rather go rogue from Mercosur on these negotiations, Montevideo understands the importance of remaining on good terms with Argentina and Brazil and has therefore accepted to move on as a group, which it can now do more easily since Lacalle Pou returned to the alliance's pro-tempore helm.

“The horizon is to open markets and generate more market access for our products,” Albertoni said. “Although market access is on the horizon and sometimes generates different positions, it does not prevent us from moving forward in terms of cooperation and investment,” he added.

“The trade agenda, which is normally always sensitive in different areas, should not limit us from moving forward both bilaterally and from Mercosur in an agenda that we believe is possible to move forward together,” the Uruguayan official also noted.

“Uruguay has been a promoter of this type of dialogue. We are moving in the whole field, in the link with China and in the market opening,” Albertoni also pointed out. “Uruguay wants this to be an area that will be strengthened” and “the simple fact of making it happen” is “an achievement in itself,” he argued.

In fact, two meetings were held on Monday: one in the morning of a bilateral nature and the other in the afternoon with all of Mercosur. “Sanitary clearances and things that are always on the bilateral agenda naturally arise in these types of conversations,” Albertoni said about the morning encounter.

Un gusto recibir hoy en Montevideo a la Vicecanciller de China, Hua Chunying (@SpokespersonCHN) para repasar la agenda bilateral comercial y de inversiones y en la tarde, junto al Ministro @OmarPaganini, restablece el Mecanismo de Diálogo MERCOSUR-China. https://t.co/R0SExVgIAM pic.twitter.com/MRru9fFihJ

— Nicolás Albertoni (@N_Albertoni) August 13, 2024