Bolivia’s accession to Mercosur is approved in the Senate and only awaits Lula’s approval

The Brazilian Senate approved this Tuesday (28) the incorporation of Bolivia as a full member of Mercosur, the regional bloc formed by Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. The South American country’s accession protocol, signed in 2015, had already been ratified by the other parliaments of the member countries and now depends only on the sanction of the Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT).

Bolivia, which already participated in Mercosur as an associated country, will have four years to adapt to the bloc’s norms and rules, such as the common external tariff and the common Mercosur nomenclature. The next Mercosur summit will be held in Rio de Janeiro on December 7, when Brazil will hand over the bloc’s biannual presidency to Paraguay.

The Senate also approved a motion to send a commission of senators to La Paz to verify Bolivia’s compliance with Mercosur’s democratic clause within 180 days.

The clause provides for the suspension of a member country in the event of a breakdown of the democratic order, as occurred with Venezuela in 2017. Venezuela was admitted as a full member of Mercosur in 2012, but its participation has been frozen since 2017 for violating obligations under the agreement. . (With EFE Agency)