President Javier Milei on Thursday urged his Mercosur partners to push for greater trade openness within the bloc as he opened a major summit of the South American bloc in Buenos Aires.
Speaking at the opening of the event, the La Libertad Avanza leader warned that his government would pursue that goal unilaterally if necessary, implying – not for the first time – that an exit from the bloc could be on the cards.
"Mercosur, which has become less and less of a market and less and less of a common market. We seek to put an end to what we consider to be destructive inertia," Milei said at the summit, where he will hand over the rotating pro-tempore presidency of the bloc to Brazil.
"That is why we have proposed that, as a bloc, we move toward a much freer trade and regulatory framework, instead of the iron curtain to which we are currently subjected, in which each country can enjoy greater autonomy to take advantage of its comparative advantages and export potential,” he continued.
"It would be a great joy if, in a few years' time, when Argentina once again has the opportunity to chair this bloc, we find ourselves in the final stretch of achieving this set of objectives.
“But if this is not possible, and the bloc's partners prefer to resist, to persist on a path that has not worked for us, then we will have to insist on making the conditions of our partnership more flexible,” said Milei.
“We will embark on the path of freedom, with partners or alone, because Argentina cannot wait,” he added.
Argentina’s government has repeatedly expressed its desire to move forward with a free-trade agreement with the United States and views Mercosur as an obstacle to achieving that goal.
“We urgently need more trade, more economic activity, more investment and more jobs – and that is why we also urgently need more freedom,” said Milei.
He called on Brazil – which, along with Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay makes up the bloc – to lead such a process during its upcoming presidency.
“But if this is not possible, and our partners prefer to resist and persist on a path that has failed us, then we will have to push for a loosening of the conditions that bind us together,” Milei warned.
Uruguay has also long pushed for more flexible rules within the bloc, which currently prevent member states from signing deals with third countries without unanimous approval.
The Mercosur is made up of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Bolivia is in the process of joining the bloc.
Uruguay, previously led by centre-right President Luis Lacalle Pou, sought a free-trade agreement with China in recent years, despite resistance from Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina, which was then under the Presidency of Peronist leader Alberto Fernández. He handed over power to Milei in December 2023.
Lula praise for regional icons
During his speech at the summit, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – an ideological rival of Milei – paid tribute to two Latin American heavyweights who recently died.
Lula declared himself proud to hail from the same part of the world as the late Pope Francis, who died on April 21, and Uruguayan former president José 'Pepe' Mujica, who died on May 13.
"It's a source of pride for me to come from the same corner of the earth as those two exceptional human beings," Lula declared.
– TIMES/AFP/NA
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