La Jornada: Lula and Xi Jinping will accelerate the Mercosur-China agreement

Rio de Janeiro., The Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, held a telephone conversation on Sunday night in which they expressed their intention to accelerate negotiations for a Mercosur-China trade agreement.

“President Lula highlighted that his government remains committed to the diversification of markets and trade partners; both agreed on the importance of accelerating negotiations for a Mercosur-China agreement, which contemplates the necessary flexibilities,” the Brazilian government reported.

The two leaders also reiterated their commitment to expanding cooperation in strategic and high-tech areas, such as artificial intelligence, satellites, critical minerals and fertilizer trade. Addressing the crisis in the Middle East, they agreed that restricting free navigation in the Straits of Hormuz and Bab al Mandeb has “detrimental effects” on the global economy, and expressed “deep concern” about the continuation of the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Furthermore, they agreed that the Friends of Peace Group can play a relevant role in the return of negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine.

In addition, Brazil also agreed with South Korea to accelerate negotiations for a possible trade pact through Mercosur, of which Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay are also part.

Mercosur has closed agreements in recent years with partners such as the European Union (EU) and the four members of the European Free Trade Association: Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.