WRITTEN QUESTION E-0064/02

by Camilo Nogueira Román (Verts/ALE) to the Council

(25 January 2002)

Subject: The Spanish presidency's position on relations with Mercosur, and Argentina in particular

The Spanish presidency's priorities presented by the Spanish Foreign Minister, Josep Piqué, include relations with Latin America, but give lower priority to relations with Mercosur than to relations with Chile, although the organisation should be given preference since it consists of countries as important as Brazil and Argentina the second of which has extremely serious problems and needs genuine help from the EU as well as Uruguay and Paraguay. What are the reasons for this?

Reply

(21 May 2002)

1. The Council wishes to stress to the Honourable Member that the EU's relations with Mercosur are of equal importance to its relations with Chile. An EU-Mercosur Summit (in parallel with the European Union-Latin America-Caribbean Summit) is to take place in Madrid on 18 May 2002. As the programme of the Spanish Presidency indicates, These meetings could provide a good opportunity to conclude the negotiations on the Association Agreement with Chile and to give a decisive boost to those taking place with Mercosur so as finally to secure a commitment from the European Union which will ensure that preferential relations with this area are maintained and developed. This statement is a fair reflection of the present state of current negotiations with Chile on the one hand and Mercosur on the other.

2. The Council would also remind the Honourable Member that conclusions on Mercosur were adopted at the General Affairs Council on 28 January 2002. In those conclusions the Council emphasises that, given the context of the current crisis in Argentina, it welcomes the determination displayed by the Mercosur Foreign Affairs Ministers in their Joint Declaration adopted in Buenos Aires on 11 January 2002 to strengthen the integration process between their countries. In addition, the Council believes that a strengthened Mercosur will be the key to the development of the region and it reaffirms the importance it attaches to the future Association Agreement between the EU and Mercosur. It welcomes the progress achieved so far in the negotiations and reiterates the EU's commitment to continue to make progress in those negotiations.

3. As regards the crisis in Argentina specifically, the Ecofin Council examined the situation in that country at length on 22 January 2002 and conclusions stressing the economic and financial aspects of the crisis were adopted and made public. The situation in Argentina was examined again at the Foreign Affairs Ministers' lunch on 28 January.

4. In conclusion, the Spanish Presidency reaffirms the importance it attaches to relations with Mercosur. The Presidency will do all that is necessary to secure progress in the negotiations progress with a view to establishing an Association Agreement between the EU and Mercosur as swiftly as possible. In addition, it will continue to follow closely the situation in Argentina and its possible repercussions in Latin America.