Tag: Mercosur

• Monday, July 16th 2012 - 03:05 UTC

  Mercosur reduced to a group “of bear-hugging and kissing compañeros”

  

  The influential British business and politics magazine The Economist anticipates that following the latest decisions by Mercosur, the South American group has little if any future. The Economist argues that the mounting protectionism and the rule-breaking admission of Venezuela have fatally undermined a once-promising trade block.

• Friday, July 13th 2012 - 23:34 UTC

  Paraguayan presidential hopeful said the country should in no way abandon Mercosur

  

  Horacio Cartes a presidential hopeful from the Paraguayan hegemonic Partido Colorado said that exiting Mercosur would only cause the closure of industries and the loss of thousands of jobs in the country.

• Friday, July 13th 2012 - 07:01 UTC

  Brazil calls OAS to consider Mercosur and Unasur statements on Paraguay

  

  Brazil considers “important” that the Organization of American States, OAS, takes into consideration the decisions from Mercosur and Unasur relative to the suspension of Paraguay from the two regional groupings.

• Wednesday, July 11th 2012 - 19:24 UTC

  With Venezuela, Mercosur will extend from Patagonia to the Caribbean

  

  Brazilian Foreign minister Antonio Patriota again supported the access of Venezuela as full member of Mercosur and the suspension of Paraguay, which he described as a clear message for all those possible “anti-democratic adventures”.

• Wednesday, July 11th 2012 - 07:17 UTC

  Defence of Argentine sovereignty over Malvinas has become “a regional issue”

  

  The Argentine ambassador in London Alicia Castro said that South America has reached such a degree of unity that it is possible to think “on the defence of Argentine sovereignty over the Malvinas in regional terms”.

• Wednesday, July 11th 2012 - 01:20 UTC

  Uruguay president and vice-president clash over Venezuela’s Mercosur admission

  

  Uruguayan Vice president Danilo Astori openly clashed with President Jose Mujica over the recent decision to incorporate Venezuela to Mercosur arguing it was “the deepest institutional injury” suffered by the block and questioned the concept that the juridical “has to be at the service of the political”.

• Monday, July 9th 2012 - 21:07 UTC

  Paraguayan industry lobby says forget Mercosur, calls for talks with Pacific Alliance

  

  The president of the Paraguayan Industrial Union Eduardo Filippo said it was essential for the country to establish negotiations outside Mercosur, following the suspension from the group by the remaining three members allegedly because of the rupture of the democratic order.

• Monday, July 9th 2012 - 05:59 UTC

  Chavez announces trip to Brazil for Venezuela’s formal admission to Mercosur

  

  President Hugo Chavez said he will be attending at the end of July the coming Mercosur meeting in Brasil when Venezuela will officially become the group’s fifth full member, a decision that has proved controversial and exposed differences inside the Common Market of the South.

• Friday, July 6th 2012 - 16:14 UTC

  Mujica proposes to blend Mercosur and Unasur into an only `more flexible group

  

  Uruguayan president Jose Mujica proposed to its South American peers to blend Mercosur and Unasur into an only group, according to an interview with a Uruguayan weekly in which he also ratified his commitment with Venezuela (and its oil resources) to justify the incorporation of the fifth full member of Mercosur.

• Friday, July 6th 2012 - 15:38 UTC

  EU prepared for talks with an expanded Mercosur that includes Venezuela

  

  The European Commission has said it will continue negotiations on an association agreement with Mercosur even if Venezuela finally becomes a full member of the group and will address the issue on a “region to region” basis.