Union of South American Nations

The Union of South American Nations (Dutch: Unie van Zuid-Amerikaanse Naties () - UZAN, Portuguese: União de Nações Sul-Americanas - UNASUL, Spanish: Unión de Naciones Suramericanas - UNASUR) is an intergovernmental union integrating two existing customs unions: Mercosur and the Andean Community of Nations (CAN), as part of a continuing process of South American integration. It is modeled on the European Union.

The UNASUR Constitutive Treaty was signed on May 23, 2008, at the Third Summit of Heads of State, held in Brasília, Brazil.^[7] According to the Constitutive Treaty, the Union's headquarters will be located in Quito, Ecuador. The South American Parliament will be located in Cochabamba, Bolivia, while the headquarters of its bank, the Bank of the South are located in Caracas, Venezuela.^[2]

The combined population of the 12-member Union as at 1 July 2010 was estimated at 396,391,032.

On 4 May 2010, at an extraordinary heads of state summit held in Campana, 75 km (47 mi) north of Buenos Aires, former Argentine President Néstor Kirchner was unanimously elected the first Secretary-General of UNASUR for a two-year term. This new office was conceived as a first step towards the establishment of a permanent bureaucratic body for the supranational union, eventually superseding Mercosur and CAN political bodies. On 1 December 2010, Uruguay became the ninth nation to ratify the UNASUR treaty, thus giving the union full legality.^[8][9]

As the Constitutive Treaty entered into force on 11 March 2011, UNASUR became a legal entity during a meeting of Foreign Ministers in Mitad del Mundo, Ecuador, where they had laid the foundation stone for the Secretariat Headquarters.^[10]

Overview

At the Third South American Summit on 8 December 2004, presidents or representatives from 12 South American nations signed the Cusco Declaration, a two-page statement of intent announcing the foundation of the South American Community. Panama and Mexico attended the signing ceremony as observers.

The group announced their intention to model the new community after the European Union including a common currency, parliament, and passport. According to Allan Wagner Tizón, former Secretary General of the Andean Community, a complete union like that of the EU should be possible by 2019.

The mechanics of the new entity came out of the First South American Community of Nations Heads of State Summit, which was held in Brasília on 29–30 September 2005. An important operating condition of UNASUR is that no new institutions will be created in the first phase, so as not to increase bureaucracy, and the community will use the existing institutions belonging to the previous trade blocs.

History

Background

Simón Bolívar, hailed in Spanish speaking South American countries as The Liberator and directly responsible for the independences of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolívia (all current members of the Andean Community with the exception of Venezuela), had envisioned in the early 19th century the establishment of a federation of Hispanic American nations with the goal of prosperity and security after independence, fearing Brazilian imperialism. Bolívar never accomplished that objective and at the time of his death had become an unpopular figure due to authoritarian attempts at the establishment of strong, centralized governments in the countries he had led to independence.

Formation

The complete integration between the Andean Community and the Mercosur nations was formalized during the meeting of South American heads of state that took place on May 23, 2008 in Brasília.^[11]

In the 2004 South American Summit, representatives of twelve South American nations signed the Cuzco Declaration, a two-page letter of intent announcing the establishment of the then-named "South American Community of Nations". Panama and Mexico were present as observers. The leaders announced the intention of modeling the new community in the mold of the European Union, including a unified passport, a parliament and, eventually, a single currency. The then Secretary General of the Andean Community Allan Wagner speculated that an advanced union such as the EU should be possible within the next fifteen years.

Name change

On 28 December 2005, Chilean former foreign minister Ignacio Walker proposed that the Union's former designation, the South American Community of Nations, abbreviated as CSN, be changed to South American Union; nevertheless, many members stated to him that that proposal had already been rejected to prevent confusion since its acronym of U.S.A. (Spanish: Unión Sudamericana) would be easily confused for the United States of America.

The name was finally changed on 16 April 2007 to Union of South American Nations. The new name was jointly agreed by all member states during the first day of meeting at the First South American Energy Summit,^[12] held at Isla Margarita, Venezuela.

Structure of the UNASUR

At the moment, the provisional structure of the UNASUR is as follows:

• A permanent Secretariat is to be established in Quito, Ecuador. The Secretary General, with a two-year mandate, is to be elected on a consensual basis among the Heads of State of the member states. Former Argentine President Néstor Kirchner was designated the first Secretary General on 4 May 2010.^[13]
• The presidents of the member nations will have an annual meeting, which will have the superior political mandate. The first meeting was in Brasília (Brazil) on 29–30 September 2005. The second meeting was in Cochabamba (Bolivia) on 8–9 December 2006. The third meeting was held in Brasília on 23 May 2008.

• The Presidency Pro Tempore, is exercised for a one-year period on a pro tempore basis by one of the heads of state of each UNASUR Member State, the succession following alphabetical order. The first leader to occupy this position was Chilean President Michelle Bachelet. According to Decisions Reached in the Political Dialogue^[14] which was signed during the I South American Energy Summit.
• The ministers of foreign affairs of each country will meet once every six months. They will formulate concrete proposals of action and of executive decision. The President of the Mercosur's permanent representatives committee and the director of the Mercosur's department, the Andean Community's general secretary, ALADI's general secretary and the permanent secretaries of any institution for regional cooperation and integration, Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization among others, will also be present at these meetings.
• Sectorial Ministers' meeting will be called upon by the presidents. The meetings will be developed according to Mercosur's and CAN's mechanisms.
• On 9 December 2005, a special commission was established in charge of advancing the process of South American Integration. It consists of 12 members, whose function is to elaborate proposals that will help the process of integration between the South American nations.
• An Executive Commission, which was created by the II CSN meeting, was transformed in the Political Commission or Delegates Council, according to Decisions Reached in the Political Dialogue.^[14]

Organs of the Unasur

The organs of UNASUR are^[15][16][17]:

• Council of Heads of State and of Government of Unasur
• President Pro Tempore of UNASUR
• Council of Minister of External Relationships of Unasur
• Council of Delegates of Unasur
• Secretary General of UNASUR

Ministerial Councils of the Unasur

They are eight Ministerial Councils of the Unasur.^[18]

• South American Council of Social Development
• South American Council of fight against the drug traffic
• South American Council of Health
• South American Council of Education, Culture, Science, Technology and Innovation
• South American Council of Defense
• South American Council of Energy
• South American Council of Economy and Finances
• South American Council of Infrastructure and Planning

Other institutions of Unasur

• South American Parliament
• Bank of the South

Current work in progress

Single market

One of the initiatives of UNASUR is the creation of a single market, beginning with the elimination of tariffs for non-sensitive products by 2014, and for sensitive products by 2019. The process is to be developed upon the progressive convergence of the procedures of pre-existing Mercosur and CAN subregional economic blocks.

Economic development

Presidents of the seven founding countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Venezuela and Uruguay) officially launched the South American Bank in Buenos Aires in December 2007. The heads of all the founding countries were at the ceremony, with the exception of President Tabaré Vázquez of Uruguay. The capital will be US$7b, with Venezuela responsible for US$3b and Brazil US$2b. The headquarters will be located in Caracas with offices in Buenos Aires and La Paz.^[19][20]

The Bank of the South will finance economic development projects to improve local competitiveness and to promote the scientific and technological development of the member states.

The founding chart affirms that the Bank will promote projects in "stable and equal" manner and priorities will be pointed to reinforce South American integration, to reduce asymmetries, and to promote egalitarian distribution of investments.

The Brazilian Minister, Guido Mantega, stated that the bank is not similar to the International Monetary Fund; it will be a credit institution similar to the World Bank.

Defence policy

The South American Defence Council (CDS) was proposed by Venezuela and Brazil to serve as a mechanism for regional security, promoting military co-operation and regional defence. From the beginning Brazil, Argentina and Chile, the countries that took the leadership of the project, made clear that they did not intend to form a NATO-like alliance, but a cooperative security arrangement, enhancing multilateral military cooperation, promoting confidence and security building measures and fostering defense industry exchange. Colombia initially refused to join the defence council due to the strong military ties it has with the United States through the Plan Colombia. However after reviewing the proposal they decided to join on 20 July 2008.^[21][22]

Shortly following the signing by Colombia's President, President of Chile Michelle Bachelet appointed a working group to investigate and draft a plan for the new council. Finally, on 10 March 2009, the 12 nation members held, in Chile, the first meeting of the newly formed council.^[23]

In mid-2010 UNASUR played a key role in mediating the 2010 Colombia–Venezuela diplomatic crisis. On 1 September 2010, the agency "UnasurHaití" was created to provide US$ 100 million in help to Haiti.^[24]

Infrastructure cooperation

• There is an Initiative for Infrastructure Integration of South America (IIRSA) underway, which has received the support of the Inter-American Development Bank and the Andean Development Corporation.
• UNASUR started plans of integration through infrastructure cooperation with the construction of the Interoceanic Highway, a road that intends to more firmly link the Pacific Coast countries, especially Chile and Peru with Brazil and Argentina by extending highways through the continent, allowing better connections to ports from Bolivia and the inner parts of Argentina, Peru, and Brazil. The first corridor, between Peru and Brazil, began construction in September 2005, financed 60% by Brazil and 40% by Peru, was expected to be ready by the end of 2009.
• The South American Energy Ring is intended to interconnect Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay with natural gas from several sources, such as the Camisea Gas Project in Peru and Tarija Gas Deposits in Bolivia. Though this proposal has been signed and ratified, economic and political difficulties in Argentina and Bolivia have delayed this initiative, and to date, this agreement remains more like a protocol than an actual project, since Chile and Brazil are already building LNG terminals to import gas from overseas suppliers.

Free movement of peoples

Visits by South American citizens to any South American independent country of up to 90 days only require an identification document issued by the traveler's country. In November 24, 2006, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guiana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela abolished visa requirements for tourists between any of those nations.

Mercosur, Bolivia and Chile established that their territories together form an "area of free residence with the right to work" to all its citizens, with no additional requirements other than nationality. The Free Movement and Residence Agreement was established in the Brasília summit based in a previous document signed in December 6, 2002.^[25]

Citizens of any Mercosur countries will have a simplified process in temporary residence visa of up to 2 years in any other member countries, with the requirements of a valid passport, birth certificate, and no criminal record. Temporary residence can become permanent if a licit means of living can be verified.^[26]

Immigration

Brazil has introduced a new temporary residency program for citizens of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Under the new program, eligible citizens of these countries will benefit from a simplified application process, which can be completed from within Brazil. If successful, they will receive a two-year residency status, after which they will be eligible for permanent residency.

Eligible citizens of the Mercosur member countries (Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay) and two Mercosur "associated countries" (Chile and Bolivia) can now apply for a special two-year temporary residency program in Brazil using a simplified application process. The new program was introduced by a government decree published on 8 October 2009, but administrative delays prevented the new program from being implemented until now.

Under the new program, natural-born citizens of these countries, or individuals who have held citizenship in these countries for at least five years, plus their legal dependents (regardless of nationality), may obtain temporary residency status in Brazil that will remain valid for two years. The temporary residency program is not linked to a specific employer, and from an immigration perspective, these residents are eligible to work for any employer in Brazil. After the first two years, the candidate is eligible for permanent residency.

Nationals of these five countries may apply for this residency program abroad at a Brazilian consular post or from within Brazil to the Brazilian Federal Police. Applicants must demonstrate their identity, citizenship and good character by presenting documents requested by immigration authorities, such as: passports, identity cards, or nationality certificates issued by their country of origin's consular post; birth certificates; marriage certificates (if applicable); declarations of criminal clearance or criminal clearance certificates; and registration fees.^[27]

According to Brazilian Labour Department, between 2005 and July, 2009: 3,083 Argentines, 1,303 Venezuelans, 1,168 Chileans, 476 Bolivians, 314 Uruguayans, 159 Paraguayans entered Brazil to work.^[28]

Participating nation states

• Members of the Andean Community of Nations (CAN): ¹ ^L
  •  Bolivia ³
  •  Colombia
  •  Ecuador ³
  •  Peru ³

• Members of Mercosur: ² ^L
  •  Argentina ³
  •  Brazil
  •  Paraguay
  •  Uruguay ³
  •  Venezuela ³ ^{M L}

• Other members:
  •  Chile ¹ ² ³ ^L
  •  Guyana ³ ^C
  •  Suriname ³ ^C

¹ These countries are also considered to be associate members of Mercosur.
² These countries are also considered to be associate members of the Andean Community.
³ Has ratified the Constitutive Treaty.^{[29][30][31]
C} Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member state
^L Latin American Integration Association (ALADI) member state
^M MERCOSUR acceding state, only waiting for Paraguay's congress ratification

• Observers of the signing ceremony:
  •  Mexico ^L
  •  Panama

Participating non-South American territories

The following territories situated outside South America are part of member states and therefore participate:

• Easter Island (Rapa Nui), a Chilean territory situated in Oceania
• San Andrés y Providencia, a Colombian territory situated in Central America
• Isla Aves, a Venezuelan territory situated in the Antilles.
• Argentine and Chilean Antarctic bases in their Antarctic territorial claims

Non-participating South American states and territories

• Trinidad and Tobago ^C

The following parts of South America are territories of non-South American states and therefore do not participate:

• French Guiana, which is an overseas department of France and is therefore part of the European Union
• The Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands¹, which are overseas territories of the United Kingdom^[32] and overseas countries and territories of EU,^[33] though claimed by Argentina.^[34]

¹ South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are commonly associated with Antarctica.

Summits

• First UNASUR Summit, 2008, 15 September, Santiago de Chile, Chile
• Second UNASUR Summit, 2009, 10 August, Quito, Ecuador
• Third UNASUR Summit, 2009, 28 August, Bariloche, Argentina
• Fourth UNASUR Summit, 2010, 26 November, Georgetown, Guyana

There were many other presidential extraordinary meetings such as :

• May 2010 : Buenos Aires : Election of Néstor Kirchner as secretary-general
• September 2010 : Buenos Aires : 2010 Ecuador crisis
• December 2010 : Mar del Plata ( in concordance with the Ibero-American Summit ) : Kirchner's successor after his death

See also

• Continental union
• Community of Latin American and Caribbean States
• Economic integration
• Free Trade Area of the Americas
• Latin American Integration Association
• Latin American Parliament
• North American Union
• Organization of American States
• Rio Group

References

External links

• Official Site of the Secretary General
• Pro Tempore Presidency official website (Spanish)
• Flag of the Union of South American Nations:
• South American Defense Council
• Andean Community: South American Community of Nations
• Brazil Ministry of Foreign Relations: South American Community of Nations
• Initiative for the Integration of Regional Infrastructure in South America
• Institute for the Integration of Latin America and the Caribbean
• Latin-American Integration Association
• Do the Mercosur Countries Form an Optimum Currency Area?
• Bank Information Center: Bank of the South
• Southern Affairs: Academic Research on South American Regional Integration
• Towards Unity: Union of South American Nations