The meeting this Wednesday, between the two presidents, was very intense and extensive, and they discussed a variety of issues of bilateral interest. Among them, one of the main topics was the modernization of the MERCOSUR and the intention of Uruguay to negotiate a free trade agreement with China. This has generated conflicting views among the countries of the bloc, and to address this issue, the creation of a technical commission between the two countries was announced to analyze it.
The Uruguayan president, Luis Lacalle Pou, pointed out that the “improvement of MERCOSUR” was on the table and clarified: “We do not fight, we simply leave our points of nuance, of difference, to improve.” At that point, Lacalle Pou indicated that a Uruguay-Brazil technical team will be created and surely with the other countries, to see what we really want and need in this case of our relationship with China.
The Uruguayan president also pointed out that if there is a decision by President Lula and the Brazilian government to move forward with China, Uruguay would calmly fold if it really meets the needs of his country.. In addition, he added that “in conclusion, Uruguay has its dialogue with China, Brazil will surely deepen, initiate other paths, and we will get together and say well, Uruguay has come this far, we are going to negotiate all together, or Brazil will say ‘this is what we we got, this is what we can offer to Mercosur’, Uruguay folds. Parallels until the moment of the definitions, and then we will see what has been achieved ”.
For his part, President Lula da Silva began by thanking Lacalle Pou for having attended his inauguration on January 1.and having led two former presidents, in reference to Julio Maria Sanguinetti and Jose Mujica, who accompanied the president on the trip. In addition, he highlighted the pride he had in having been the president of Brazil who maintained a relationship with Uruguay, “extraordinary” from the social, political and commercial point of view.
He also mentioned that since he took office in 2003 and elected Celso Luiz Nunes Amorim as Foreign Minister, they decided that Brazil, as the largest country in Latin America, should have a generous policy with its allies that have less economic support. “This is what we did with all the countries of South America, we did with the African countries and with the Caribbean countries,” stressed the Brazilian president.
