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Joint Communiqué by the Presidents of MERCOSUR member states and Bolivia

Monday, 18 June 2018
Information for the Press N°: 
255/18

The Presidents of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Michel Temer; of the Republic of Paraguay, Horacio Cartes; of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, Tabaré Vázquez, as well as the Vice-President of the Argentine Republic, Gabriela Michetti, on behalf of the MERCOSUR Member States, and the Vice-President of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Álvaro García Linera, gathered in Asunción on 18 June 2018, on the occasion of the 52nd Summit of Heads of State of MERCOSUR:

1.    Reaffirmed their firm commitment to the integration process of MERCOSUR, highlighting its aims of strengthening development and improving the quality of life of its peoples; full force of democracy and the rule of law, and protection and promotion of and full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms;

2.    Underscored the importance of the MERCOSUR Structural Convergence Fund (FOCEM), as a tool to reduce asymmetries. In that regard, they welcomed the Framework Agreement on International Cooperation between MERCOSUR and the River Plate Basin Financial Development Fund (FONPLATA), aimed at strengthening ties between the two bodies for the development of programmes and projects, through technical assistance and financial complementarity agreements and a trust agreement, within the framework of their respective responsibilities, objectives and jurisdictions;

3.    Welcomed the work carried out by the MERCOSUR Committee of Permanent Representatives to follow up on the Plan of Action for the gradual establishment of the MERCOSUR Citizenship Statute, prioritizing actions aimed at achieving its full implementation on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the creation of MERCOSUR;

4.    Underscored the importance of strengthening the MERCOSUR Social Institute (ISM) as a technical body supporting all fora responsible for deepening the social dimension of the integration process. In addition, they underscored the work carried out by the MERCOSUR Institute of Human Rights Public Policies (IPPDH) as the body responsible for strengthening human rights as a core aspect of the integration process;

5.   Highlighted the agreements and statements delivered by the Meeting of Health Ministers of MERCOSUR regarding the "Comprehensive core themes on cross-border healthcare for MERCOSUR" as one of the high-impact priorities of great importance for developing public policies on the provision of healthcare services at borders;

6.    Highlighted the adoption of the 2018-2020 Plan of Action for developing a MERCOSUR Digital Agenda, with a view to modernizing the integration process in view of the regional and global challenges posed by technological transformation;

7.  Welcomed the approval of the "Communications Strategic Plan", which establishes the goals and specific actions to be taken in 2018-2019 in order to communicate the progress made in the integration process and afford greater visibility to the achievements made for the benefit of MERCOSUR citizens;

8.    Welcomed the successful completion of the review of the MERCOSUR Trade Commission Rules, which will contribute to affording greater dynamism and effectiveness to the work of this decision-making body;

9.    Reaffirmed the need to strengthen the open, transparent, inclusive, non-discriminatory, fair and rules-based multilateral trade system, including its dispute settlement mechanism, with the WTO as its cornerstone and development as a key goal.  In addition, they stressed that a possible reform of the WTO will have to be carried out in a transparent and inclusive fashion so as to enhance disciplines regulating international trade, especially the agriculture sector;

Highlighted their commitment to negotiations within the framework of the WTO regarding issues of great importance for the trade agenda, especially those that were supported at the WTO Ministerial Conference in Buenos Aires: e-commerce; micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs); women's economic empowerment; investment facilitation, and the elimination of subsidies on fisheries, in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda;

10. Ratified their commitment to the implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, in force since 22 February 2017, and agreed to make joint efforts to make progress in coordinating the design of mechanisms that facilitate trade among the Member States;

11.  Highlighted the major efforts made by MERCOSUR in the negotiations with the European Union for a Bi-regional Partnership Agreement, which demonstrate MERCOSUR's commitment to integration in every stage of the process, especially since October 2016, when the two blocs agreed to exchange market access offers.

In this regard, in connection with the progress made so far in such negotiations, they stressed the need to achieve political consensus between the two blocs in order to reach an agreement on mutual benefits for the development and prosperity of their peoples;

12.  Highlighted that MERCOSUR has become a leading international trade actor, which is reflected in its broad and dynamic foreign relations agenda. They stressed that, during this first half of the year, the bloc has entered into negotiations with Canada and the Republic of Korea -two thriving economies of great importance to world trade- as a strong response to the current protectionist policies;

Welcomed the progress made in other negotiation processes, especially in the negotiation with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), with which three rounds of negotiation have been held already;

Underscored the importance of making progress on the actions set forth in the MERCOSUR-Pacific Alliance "Roadmap" and strengthening ties between the two regional blocs; They welcomed the Meeting of Presidents between MERCOSUR and the Pacific Alliance to be held next July in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico;

13.  Expressed their recognition for the democratic commitment shown by the Republic of Paraguay in the national elections of 22 April 2018, which were held in the presence of international observers, in the belief that this significant citizen participation event reaffirms and is a testament to Paraguay's democratic consolidation process;

14. Acknowledged and thanked the President of the Republic of Paraguay, Horacio Manuel Cartes, and the Paraguayan Government and people for their hospitality and wished success to Uruguay in holding the Pro Tempore Presidency and achieving the objectives set.

 

Press Release No. 255/18