The EU-LAC Foundation participated during the Seminar “The Americas and the European Union face the new scenarios in political and commercial relations”. The event was organised by “Secretaría General Iberoamericana”, “Real Instituto Elcano” and Casa de América in Madrid. Additionally, the United Nations Development Program- UNDP, Institut des Amériques in Paris and FRIDE have also supported the seminar.
During the Seminar, the redefinition of the transatlantic association and the conditions to create a triangular cooperation between the European Union, Latin America and the United States were analysed. The Seminar was organised in three panels, providing a space for an open exchange of ideas and discussion between academic experts and policy-makers about the dynamics and potential of cooperation between the two continents in a renewed political and economic international system.
The first discussion analysed possible consequences and impact for Latin American countries as a result of the potential materialization of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership between the United States and the European Union. During the second panel, the commercial orientation of Latin American countries towards the Atlantic vis-à vis the Pacific was discussed. Finally, the participants contemplated the perspectives of cooperation between the EU and the US, taking into account the current Latin American context.
In her speech, the EU-LAC Foundation’s President, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, analysed the creation of a transatlantic partnership through a Latin American lenses, emphasising the necessity to study separately the effects of this agreement, considering the differentiated economic integration of the region’s countries and its establishment of previous agreements with the European Union or the United States. Furthermore, the EU-LAC Foundation’s President set out the pillars of a potential triangular cooperation EU-US-Latin America and the Caribbean, as the liberalisation of commerce, the treatment of crosscutting issues on the transatlantic agenda, the competitiveness with third regions and the shared values.
To read the full speech of EU-LAC Foundation's President Benita Ferrero-Waldner, please click here.
Pictures courtesy of SEGIB.