OECD opens accession talks with Argentina, Brazil and Peru

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) announced in a press release Tuesday that it had opened “accession discussions” with six potential new members, including Argentina, Brazil and Peru.

The opening of accession talks with the three Latin American and three European countries (Bulgaria, Croatia, and Romania) was decided at a meeting of the OECD Council, according to a statement

According to the resolution, the evaluation of the applications will begin in order to determine whether these countries comply with "the preservation of individual freedom, the values of democracy, the rule of law and the protection of human rights."

In addition, OECD members must be committed to "an open market economy based on free trade, competition, sustainability and transparency," the text added.

"Candidate countries will be able to use the accession process to promote further reforms for the benefit of their people, while also strengthening the OECD as a like-minded community committed to a rules-based international order," OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said following the Council's decision.

The technical reviews will focus on areas such as “open trade and investment, progress on public governance, integrity and anti-corruption efforts, as well as the effective protection of the environment and action on climate,” the organisation said.

The OECD has four Latin American countries among its 38 member states: Chile, Costa Rica, Colombia and Mexico.

Brazil’s bid for membership hit a patch of turbulence in 2020 when former Justice Minister Sergio Moro’s allegations that President Jair Bolsonaro had tried to intervene with federal police came to the attention of Drago Kos, chairman of the OECD’s anti-bribery group. He urged Brazilian officials to investigate, adding that “we have to be absolutely sure that Brazil is not going backward.”

The countries that make up the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which was founded in 1961, and their key partners account for around 80 percent of world trade and investment.

There is no deadline for completion of the accession process, according to the OECD.

– TIMES/AFP