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Americas - Institutions
Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR).
Mercado Común del Sur
The Mercosur was created by
Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay in March 1991 with the signing of the
Treaty of Asuncion. The EU-Mercosur relationship is based on the EU-Mercosur
Interregional Framework Co-operation Agreement signed on 15 December 1995 in
Madrid between the EC and its Member States and the Mercosur and its Party
States.
Objectives of MERCOSUR
- Free transit of production goods, services and factors between the
member states with inter alia, the elimination of customs rights and lifting
of nontariff restrictions on the transit of goods or any other measures with
similar effects;
- Fixing of a common external tariff (TEC) and adopting of a common trade
policy with regard to nonmember states or groups of states, and the
coordination of positions in regional and international commercial and
economic meetings;
- Coordination of macroeconomic and sectorial policies of member states
relating to foreign trade, agriculture, industry, taxes, monetary system,
exchange and capital, services, customs, transport and communications, and
any others they may agree on, in order to ensure free competition between
member states; and
- The commitment by the member states to make the necessary adjustments to
their laws in pertinent areas to allow for the strengthening of the
integration process. The Asuncion Treaty is based on the doctrine of the
reciprocal rights and obligations of the member states
MERCOSUR initially targeted free-trade zones, then customs unification and,
finally, a common market, where in addition to customs unification the free
movement of manpower and capital across the member nations' international
frontiers is possible, and depends on equal rights and duties being granted to
all signatory countries.
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