Buenos Aires, 5 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - As he arrived yesteday in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the Mercosur Summit, president Fernando Henrique Cardoso said the economic blocks problems were similar to those the European Union has been dealing with for 20 years. "[Integration] is a process, not an act," he said.

Cardoso also pointed out that it not just Southern Cone countries that were being affected by the international financial crisis. Even superpowers, like the US, were having problems. "The difficulties in the American economy can be seen by all," but it remains a superpower. "At some point we will all come out of this. It is an economic cycle," said Cardoso. (AB)