Canada has concluded comprehensive and ambitious free trade agreements with the four members of the Alliance. Authors: José Bernardo García, Camilo Pérez-Restrepo, María Teresa Uribe Jaramillo Full document:2018, García et al, Understanding the relationship between the Pacific Alliance and regional mega-agreements in the Asia-Pacific – what we learned from the GTAP simulation Paraguay, a founding member of Mercosur and an observer of the Pacific Alliance, has begun to conclude free trade agreements with current members as a precursor to a possible application for membership. [29] Paraguay was suspended by Mercosur after the impeachment of Fernando Lugo, although Paraguay called on Mercosur to lift the sanction. After the election and inauguration of Horacio Cartes, Paraguay has so far affirmed that “Paraguay will not abandon Mercosur”, but has assured that it will try to join the alliance. [30] The government said it would consider joining the Pacific Alliance and Mercosur. [29] [31] Ecuador has criticized the alliance in cooperation with other ALBA leaders,[22] but its president, Rafael Correa, has also speculated on a possible future offer if integration progresses in areas other than trade. [23] Canada, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand are in the process of becoming associate members of the Alliance, while Costa Rica and Panama are negotiating to become official members. However, following the signing of the Framework Agreement and the start of the path to full membership in 2013, the Costa Rican government slowed down its accession process due to concerns about the impact the alliance could have on the country`s agricultural sector. The country`s new president, Carlos Alvarado Quesada, campaigned against Costa Rica`s accession, saying he would negotiate a better deal on behalf of the country`s agricultural and industrial sector.
Summary: The Asia-Pacific region is the epicenter of the emergence of a number of megaregional agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Agreement (TPP), the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Pacific Alliance (PA), which was created in 2011 between Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. However, since the beginning of 2017, the region has experienced increasing protectionism, as evidenced by the US decision to withdraw from the TPP, which is sending shockwaves throughout the region. One of the first topics to be defined was the basic institutional framework of the Pacific Alliance, which was developed on the basis of the approval of existing free trade agreements between member countries. The process of developing a framework agreement culminated on 6 June 2012 in Paranal, Antofagasta, Chile, with the signing of the Pacific Alliance Framework Agreement. It should be noted that on June 9, 2016, representatives of the Canadian government and Pacific Alliance countries signed a Strategic Alliance Agreement to promote trade and investment. As a result, Canada was the first observer country to enter into a strategic alliance with the Pacific Alliance. According to a joint statement, the agreement formalizes canada`s relationship with the Pacific Alliance and provides a framework for long-term cooperation. The Pacific Alliance is a trading bloc aiming to become the largest in Latin America. It consists of four countries: Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. The alliance was founded after the Lima Declaration, which was established on September 28. It was signed in April 2011 when then Peruvian President Alan Garcia took the initiative to invite his counterparts from Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Panama to “deepen integration between these economies and establish joint measures for trade relations with the Asia-Pacific region on the basis of existing bilateral trade agreements between the parties.” Costa Rica began the accession process on 10 February 2014 at the eighth Alliance Summit in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, when President Laura Chinchilla signed minutes at a plenary session concluding the decision to join the Alliance.
[20] Since then, the country has indefinitely postponed its integration into the Alliance until the deliberations of its Presidential Economic Council are completed. [21] The Palestinian Authority has decided to continue its process and has recently begun negotiations with four associate members (Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore). It is in this context that the Pacific Alliance now faces structural changes and uncertainties. This raises questions such as: What role should the Pacific Alliance play in the new regional architecture in the Asia-Pacific region? How should the Pacific Alliance prepare to maintain its relevance in the context of mega-regional agreements involving several of its members? Based on these and other questions, the authors formulated a total of six scenarios that describe the possible interactions between Pacific alliances and other mega-regional agreements. The alliance was formed on September 28. It was founded informally in April 2011 when the presidents of Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru signed the Lima Declaration. This initiative was developed by then Peruvian President Alan García to complement existing bilateral trade agreements between the four countries and create an economic bloc to negotiate and trade with other economies as a single group. The objective of the Alliance was to increase competitiveness through the integration of economies and enable the free movement of capital, goods, people and services among Members, as well as to seek the expansion of trade with Asia-Pacific countries.
The Pacific Alliance is a regional initiative launched in 2011 by Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. The objectives of the Alliance are to promote the free movement of goods, services, capital and people and to promote greater competitiveness and economic growth in member countries. The Framework Agreement stipulates that Member States must be democracies that exercise state power and protect, promote and guarantee human rights and fundamental freedoms. They must also have existing bilateral trade agreements with member countries. Article 3 of the Framework Agreement sets out the conditions applicable to the candidate countries. The bloc aims to sign free trade agreements (FTAs) with Asia-Pacific countries based on existing bilateral trade agreements. .