Although Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is not attending the Mercosur summit in Paraguay, his administration continues with its policy of unilaterally reducing the common external tariff. In this case Brazil's Foreign Trade Chamber Executive Committee approved the reduction of import tariffs on thirteen items, including medicines, medical equipment, printing ink and polypropylene resin. Tariffs were cut to zero or reduced to 2%, from 2% and 6,5%.
Mercosur Foreign Ministers Monday agreed to hold the upcoming Summit of the Group in Asunción on July 21. It will be the first face-to-face encounter of all four regional leaders since all previous meetings involving all four current leaders were all held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Uruguay stood out for its dissenting stance at the 59th Summit of the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) Friday after President Luis Lacalle Pou refused to sign a joint declaration.
Argentina's Ambassador to Brazil Daniel Scioli Wednesday said Friday's Mercosur Summit posed no risk of tensions between Presidents Alberto Fernández and Jair Bolsonaro, despite former Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva's recent appearance at a ceremony in Buenos Aires.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro Wednesday decided that the upcoming Mercosur Summit, scheduled for Dec. 16 and 17, which was to be the first in a long while under the old face-to-face format, has been reshaped to be held virtually like most recent ones.
Argentine Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero, Ambassador Daniel Scioli and Productive Development Minister Matías Kulfas Saturday met in Brasilia with Brazilian Economy Minister Paulo Guedes to deepen the new economic ties between the two countries
The Government of Argentina Monday submitted a proposal for the average reduction of the Common External Tariffs during a virtual meeting of Southern Common Market (Mercosur)'s Foreign Ministers, it was announced.
Uruguay's President Luis Lacalle Pou Monday stood by the words he said during Friday's virtual Mercosur Summit which led to a rife with his Argentina counterpart Alberto Fernández.
In the aftermath of Friday's presidential clash between Alberto Fernández and Uruguay's Luis Lacalle Pou over the Mercosur's alleged lack of “flexibility,” Argentine Foreign Ministry's Cabinet Chief Guillermo Chaves said Saturday in a radio interview that the bloc's fundamental identity was to negotiate jointly on behalf of all members, but if each partner was allowed to hold deals individually, the association would lose its raison d'être.
Argentine President Alberto Fernández told his Uruguayan counterpart Luis Lacalle Pou his country did not want to be “a burden on anyone” when the latter called for signs of “flexibilization” on the part of Mercosur to allow member states to seek unilateral foreign trade agreements elsewhere without the bloc's approval.