The president of Argentina, Alberto Fernández, has reproached his Uruguayan counterpart, Luis Lacalle Pou, for «breaking» Mercosur rules and acting unilaterally, in reference to his decision to request entry into the Trans-Pacific Partnership, formed by eleven countries from the Americas and Asia.
«The solution is not for everyone to make their own; I don’t think that is the mechanism», he stressed», expressed the Argentine president during the Mercosur summit held this Tuesday in Montevideo, the Uruguayan capital. «Unilateral actions are of no concern», he stressed.
«Luis, dear, with all due respect, to continue the frank debate you have proposed to me. One of the conditions is to comply with the rules, and Mercosur’s rules say that these agreements must have another mechanism,» said Fernández, who defended the need to «empower» the bloc in the face of global challenges, such as the economic ravages of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
«The path is not the one you propose, but to review once and for all how we correct the asymmetries we have and those that are worrying», emphasized Fernandez to his Uruguayan counterpart, reports the Télam agency.
For his part, Lacalle Pou acknowledged that Uruguay’s plans, which are also opposed by Brazil and Paraguay, although they have caused certain «tensions» in the regional group, the intention is not a «rupture», since his intention has always been to involve them in his negotiations, for example, with China.
