Lourenço Melo
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Brasília - The Mercosur is of decisive importance for the future of all the countries in the bloc and in international negotiations, with consequences for all of South America. The opening of markets President Lula's Administration is promoting is of fundamental significance for this end, Eduardo Duhalde, president of the Commission of Permanent Mercosur Members and ex-president of Argentina, declared yesterday (1).

He met with the Minister of Culture, Gilberto Gil, with whom he discussed cultural integration and communication among Mercosur and South American countries in order to carry out projects in this area. Duhalde thinks that the unity of the bloc provides an opportunity for understandings among South American countries in all areas, beyond just commercial and political interests.

The Mercosur representative said that another reason for his visit was to sound President Lula out on these matters to find ways to harmonize the ideas of the presidents of the bloc's member countries in order to establish a work program for this year. He also referred to the goal of creating artistic and literary projects that should generate a series of events in the cultural sphere in South America. According to Duhalde, the Mercosur's agenda embraces the literary field, movies, and soccer, for which there exists an interest, as well, in understandings with the European Union.

Duhalde commented Brazil's opening of new markets, as corroborated, yesterday, by the Ministry of Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade's disclosure that 18 countries that were not traditional trade partners began purchasing Brazilian products, adding substantially to January's exports. Duhalde believes that this process developed by Brazil has great importance as well for Brazil's neighbors, which can descry new business opportunities via the Mercosur.

Translation: David Silberstein