"Being in Mercosur protects us," says Lula.

247 - During the Mercosur Summit held in Buenos Aires, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) highlighted this Thursday (3) the strategic importance of the South American bloc amid the global scenario of instability and uncertainty.

Lula highlighted the solidity built by the group over the last few decades and pointed to Mercosur as a space for regional protection and cooperation. "When the world appears unstable and threatening, it's natural to seek refuge where we feel safe. For Brazil, Mercosur is that place," the president stated.

In his speech, he recalled the institutional advances of the bloc and reinforced the importance of trade integration with transparent and sustainable foundations. “Over more than three decades, we have built a house with solid foundations, capable of withstanding the force of adversity. We have managed to create a network of agreements that has extended to the associated states. All of South America has become a free trade area with clear rules,” he said.

The president also highlighted the protection offered by the bloc's common rules against external economic disputes. "Being in Mercosur protects us. Our common external tariff shields us from foreign trade wars. Our institutional strength gives us credibility with the world as reliable partners," he declared, noting that the growing interest of other countries and blocs in approaching Mercosur is proof of its relevance.

Lula concluded by emphasizing that the Brazilian presidency will be an opportune moment to rethink South America's role on the international stage. "We will face the challenge of safeguarding our space of autonomy in an increasingly polarized context. The Brazilian presidency will represent an opportunity to reflect on the place we aspire to occupy on the new global chessboard," he concluded.

Check out the full text of Lula's speech:

It is with satisfaction that I return to Buenos Aires, where we have already taken so many steps in building a common path for the Southern Cone.

When the world seems unstable and threatening, it's natural to seek refuge where we feel safe.

For Brazil, MERCOSUR is that place.

For over three decades, we have built a house with solid foundations, capable of withstanding the force of the elements.

We managed to create a network of agreements that extended to the associated states.

All of South America has become a free trade area, based on clear and balanced rules.

Being in MERCOSUR protects us.

Our Common External Tariff protects us against foreign trade wars.

Our institutional strength establishes us as reliable partners in the eyes of the world.

It's no coincidence that a growing number of countries and blocs are interested in getting closer to us.

I witnessed this interest firsthand through my contacts with leaders from various regions.

We will face the challenge of safeguarding our space for autonomy in an increasingly polarized context.

The Brazilian presidency will represent an opportunity to reflect on the place we aspire to occupy on the new global stage.

In this endeavor, it will be essential to prioritize five issues.

The first of these is strengthening trade between us and with foreign partners.

There are still frontiers to overcome, such as the inclusion of the automotive and sugar sectors in our customs union.

Postponing this task means sacrificing the bloc's strategic potential in the production of electric vehicles and biofuels.

Prosperity isn't built solely through big business deals.

It is necessary to reactivate the MERCOSUR Business Forum and offer greater support to small and medium-sized enterprises.

We can lower costs and reduce exchange rate risks by using our own currencies.

We need a revitalized and modern local currency payment system that facilitates digital transactions.

It is important to expand markets and diversify partnerships.

I welcome the conclusion of negotiations with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).

I am confident that, by the end of this year, we will sign agreements with the European Union and EFTA, creating one of the largest free trade areas in the world.

We will also move forward with negotiations with Canada and the United Arab Emirates.

In the region, it is necessary to work with Panama and the Dominican Republic, and update the agreements with Colombia and Ecuador.

It's time for MERCOSUR to look to Asia, the dynamic center of the world economy.

Our participation in global value chains will benefit from closer ties with Japan, China, Korea, India, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

The circulation of goods and services depends on adequate infrastructure.

The Brazilian program "Routes of South American Integration" aims to shorten distances and reduce costs.

The completion of the Bioceanic Route, which connects Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, and Chile, will reduce travel time to Asia by up to two weeks.

Two Brazilian projects recently approved by FOCEM are part of the Route, which will improve sanitation and road connectivity for the border populations of Corumbá and Ponta Porã.

Brazil will be working throughout this semester on structuring the second phase of FOCEM.

We will need the continued support of FONPLATA, which is establishing itself as the integration bank of the Southern Cone.

The second issue concerns addressing climate change and promoting the energy transition.

The consequences of global warming are already being felt in the Southern Cone.

The region suffers from droughts and floods that cause loss of life, destruction of infrastructure, and crop failures.

Reality is moving faster than the Paris Agreement, exposing the fallacy of climate change denial.

Brazil will reduce its emissions by between 59 and 67% by 2035 across all economic sectors, encompassing all greenhouse gases.

I congratulate Uruguay and Ecuador for also submitting their Nationally Determined Contributions.

At COP30 in Belém, we will have the chance to show the world the solutions that are coming from South America.

Our Meeting of Environment Ministers will be a crucial step in preparing for the Conference.

Through the MERCOSUR Green program, we will strengthen our sustainable agriculture.

Our cooperation will promote common sustainability standards, traceability mechanisms, and technological innovations.

We need renewed momentum to recover our industrial capacity with environmental responsibility.

We will propose the formulation of a sustainable taxonomy in MERCOSUR, to attract investments in favor of a just transition.

South America has everything it takes to be the heart of this process.

We already have cleaner energy matrices than other regions.

We possess some of the largest reserves of critical minerals in the world.

I have just returned from the G7 Summit, where access to these minerals was discussed as an imperative for energy security.

The race for lithium, rare earths, graphite, and copper has already begun.

An expanded MERCOSUR is our best platform for bringing national policies closer together and coordinating them.

It is essential to ensure that the processing stages take place within our territories, with technology transfer and the generation of jobs and income.

Seeking support from OLADE, Brazil will reactivate discussions within Working Subgroup 15 to lay the groundwork for a South American agreement on critical minerals.

The third area is technological development.

New technologies are concentrated in the hands of a small number of people and companies, based in an even smaller number of countries.

Recently, Brazil and Chile formalized a partnership to create Artificial Intelligence models that reflect the cultural and linguistic realities of Latin America.

Initiatives like this can be expanded to MERCOSUR and throughout South America.

Bringing data centers to the region is a matter of digital sovereignty.

This effort must be accompanied by the local development of computing capabilities, respect for data protection, and investments to meet additional energy demands.

The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the vulnerability we face due to a lack of access to vaccines and medications.

Brazil wants to make MERCOSUR a hub for health technologies, capable of meeting the needs of our population.

Our fourth challenge is combating organized crime.

Criminal groups undermine the authority of the State, spreading violence, corruption, and environmental destruction.

We will not defeat these veritable multinational criminal organizations without acting in a coordinated manner.

We need to invest in intelligence, curb the flow of weapons, and stifle the resources that finance the crime industry.

With the renewal of the Tripartite Command of the Triple Frontier, we will have a permanent platform for cooperation to combat financial crimes and the trafficking of drugs, weapons, and people.

With the opening of the Amazon International Police Cooperation Center in Manaus, security forces from the nine Amazonian countries will work together to combat environmental crimes and other illegal activities.

These are complementary initiatives that need to interact with each other to gain South American scale.

Brazil will mobilize the expanded MERCOSUR to improve and deepen this collaboration.

The fifth priority is promoting the rights of our citizens.

Without social inclusion and addressing inequalities of all kinds, there will be no lasting progress.

The Institute for Public Policies on Human Rights and the Social Institute of MERCOSUR should be strengthened.

Your technical support has been invaluable to our countries.

The MERCOSUR Social Summit will resume to point out new paths for the bloc.

With the same purpose, we will hold a Union Summit.

The strength of our democracies depends on dialogue and respect for pluralism.

Since the last Summit in Montevideo, we have lost two great figures from the Southern Cone: President Pepe Mujica and Pope Francis.

I am proud to come from the same quadrant of the Earth as these two exceptional human beings.

The Brazilian presidency of MERCOSUR will honor its legacy, working towards a solidarity-based and sustainable integration.

I wish you a productive semester and look forward to seeing you all in Brazil in December.