The Foreign Minister of Uruguay is touring the isthmus proposing an FTA with Mercosur, even though the President of the very same country describes it as "a bad customs union".
EDITORIAL:
The Foreign Minister of Uruguay, Luis Almagro, is touring the Central American countries, saying that he is mandated by the countries of the southern block to propose to Central America, a free trade agreement with Mercosur. According to an article in Elsalvador.com the Uruguayan Foreign Minister said that "... in the first half of the year "it is expected that there will be 'technical meetings which will open the way for commercial negotiations between the two blocks."
The limitations imposed by its larger partners in Mercosur prevent Uruguay from progressing toward an FTA.
In this context, what was left was to sign a series of cooperation agreements in the areas of trade, postal services, education and technology.
Presidents Oscar Arias and Tabaré Vásquez announced the creation of a Uruguay-Costa Rica Chamber of Commerce "which will help expand trade between both nations."
Deputy economy ministers of Central America and the Dominican Republic met in San Salvador to evaluate the region's trade agreements with other countries.
Central America and the Dominican Republic signed the Cafta accord with the United States in 2004, and the Central American countries are currently negotiating an association with the European Union.
Guatemala's Foreign Minister Haroldo Rodas said that, at the Central American summit on May 29 in El Salvador, he intends to press for a commercial agreement with the South American common market, Mercosur.
Rodas said that President Alvaro Colom and the Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva recently agreed to kick-start the stalled trade talks between Central America and Mercosur.
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