Unasur looks to consolidate itself as region’s main political forum

Fernando Sánchez

Bound together by strong historical ties and similar cultures, the countries of Latin America have made attempts to pursue regional economic integration since they became independent.

From Bolivar's dream of a South American Nation and the short-lived Federal Republic of Central America (1823-40) to the CAN, SICA, and Unasur of today, the plans have been in continuous flux as the global political and economic situation has changed.

INFOSURHOY presents a series of reports on regional integration plans as the world faces its greatest economic crisis in decades.

SANTIAGO, Chile - One year after the 12 countries of the Southern Cone signed the constituent treaty of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) in Brazil, the new regional integration platform now faces the challenge of consolidating itself as the political forum of choice for its member countries.

According to some observers, the two main South American platforms for commercial and customs relations, the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) and the Andean Community of Nations (CAN), have both entered phases of lessened dynamism, allowing the new Unasur to rise to the challenge.

Unasur was founded in 2004 and its members are Chile, Ecuador, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay, French Guiana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela.

Originally conceived as a political and economic community, one of Unasur's challenges is to pacify the subcontinent, says the BBC, and to neutralise potential internal conflicts such as those that arose in Bolivia in 2008 after President Evo Morales reported an attempted "civic-prefectural coup d'état".

In the latter case Unasur passed its first test. The emergency summit attended by nine of the ten presidents of Unasur in Santiago, Chile to address the Bolivian problem "served to initiate this body in political issues," explained Carlos Toranzo to the BBC. "Beforehand Unasur was barely an abstraction alongside the CAN and Mercosur, and now it has achieved something more than that," added the political scientist.

The pro tempore presidency of Unasur is currently held by Chilean president Michelle Bachelet, but she is due to hand over the post to her Ecuadorian counterpart, Rafael Correa, at the third Summit of Heads of State and Government of Unasur to be held on 6 July in the Chilean city of Viña del Mar.

The bloc's next challenge, in the words of Chilean government spokeswoman Carolina Tohá, is to endow Unasur with a "more steadfast institutionality".  Tohá said to EFE, "We propose the establishment of a mechanism by which we can move beyond this stage of pro tempore presidencies and have something more permanent".

In this regard, Ecuadorian foreign secretary Fander Falconí stressed that once his country takes over the pro tempore presidency of Unasur it will seek "to strengthen the sub-regional space".

Correa's priorities include implementing the South American Defence Council and transforming Unasur into a political forum whereby countries in the region can resolve situations of conflict.

In the opinion of Ecuadorian analyst Wladimir Sierra, Unasur "offers the ideal conditions to become a space which regulates the region's interests," reported El Telégrafo. "Its political power is large and wide ranging enough to ensure the political and economic strength of the region". Only time will tell if this will indeed occur.

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