President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defended this Monday (29) the union of Latin American countries during a press conference alongside the president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro. “South America needs to work as a bloc. It is impossible to imagine that, alone, a country will solve its serious problems that have lasted for more than 500 years”, defended the Brazilian president. “If we are together, we have 450 million people, we have a GDP of almost US$ 4.5 trillion. We have strength in the negotiation process and that is why this moment [cúpula] it’s important,” he added. Summit Starting this Tuesday (30), heads of state of South American countries will meet in Brasilia, at the Itamaraty Palace. The presidents of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela confirmed their presence. A meeting of this size has not taken place for at least seven years. “The main objective of this meeting is to resume dialogue with South American countries, which has been very truncated in recent years, and is a priority of the Lula government. We are aware that there are differences in vision and ideological differences between countries, but he [Lula] wants to reactivate this dialogue based on common denominators with the countries”, explained ambassador Gisela Padovan, secretary for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE), last Friday (26). Although the Brazilian government avoids pointing out a specific proposal, there is an expectation that the presidents will discuss more concrete ways to expand integration, including the possibility of creating or restructuring a South American cooperation mechanism, which brings together all the nations in the region. Currently, there is no block with these characteristics.
Agência Brasil
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