The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the MERCOSUR, Ambassador Eladio Loizaga, from Paraguay, President Pro Tempore in-office; Aloysio Nunes Ferreira Filho, from Brazil, and Rodolfo Nin Novoa, from Uruguay; the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Services of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Marcos Jorge de Lima, and the Secretary of International Economic Relations of Argentina, Horacio Reyser, had a meeting in Seoul with the Minister of Trade of the Republic of Korea, Hyun Chong Kim.
Upon the end of the meeting, the Ministers agreed to issue a Joint Declaration about the Launch of the Negotiations for a Trade Agreement between the Argentine Republic, the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Republic of Paraguay, and the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, Member States of the MERCOSUR, and the Republic of Korea.
The mentioned Declaration states the following:
“The Ministers agreed to initiate negotiations for a Trade Agreement between the Republic of Korea and the MERCOSUR. This represents a meaningful step towards the deepening of the important relationship between the MERCOSUR and the Republic of Korea.
The Ministers highlighted the opportunity that represents an Agreement commercially meaningful for the mutual benefit of Korea and the MERCOSUR. The strengthening of the links through trade and flows of investment is an expression of interest shared in prosperity and of shared commitment with the trade liberalization and the open markets.
The Ministers committed to continue the negotiations in order to provide opportunities to the people of the Republic of Korea and the Member States of the MERCOSUR without delay, and instructed the officials to hold the first negotiations round in the second half of 2018”.
