“Let’s be pragmatic, we are a small country in a complicated world, we need trade partners,” foreign minister tells POLITICO.
BRUSSELS — It’s a tough world out there, and countries in both the European Union and Latin America need to boost partnerships to offset Donald Trump’s tariff threats, Uruguay’s top diplomat said.
“Energy is expensive. China is now seen as a complicated competitor. The U.S. is getting more and more protectionist. In this new geopolitical scenario, it is key for Europe to strengthen the partnerships they can have,” Uruguay’s Foreign Minister Omar Paganini told POLITICO in an interview.
“For Latin America, the situation is rather similar … in the sense that we are being pulled by different powers like China, the U.S. We need long-term friendships with stable partners,” he added.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and her trade czar Maroš Šefčovič flew in to Montevideo in December to seal a blockbuster free-trade agreement — after decades of talks — with the Latin American Mercosur trade bloc that comprises Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.
It came as Uruguay also seeks to boost ties with China, its top trading partner after neighboring Brazil. The two have been in negotiations over a bilateral trade deal since 2021, with Montevideo also pushing for a wider Mercosur trade agreement with China.
“We know we have issues related to how Chinese believe, and their political organization, the human rights issues,” the foreign minister said.
“So let’s be pragmatic, we are a small country in a complicated world, we need trade partners. They are stable people,” he added, pointing to the need to get better access to the Chinese market for Uruguayan beef, soybeans and dairy products.
The EU is belatedly trying to counter China’s expanding trade presence in the region, with Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top diplomat, saying in November that if Brussels doesn’t seal a deal with the Mercosur region, then “this void will be filled really by China.”
Asked about the impact of Trump’s tariffs on Uruguay’s economy, Paganini said: “Business is business. The world will be unstable. We will have disruptions. We have to surf them. Europe will have them and needs to surf them,” he said, adding that it would be premature to outline strategy before Trump announces any tariffs.
While the EU-Mercosur deal has been slammed by France, among others, as giving entry to cheap beef European farmers’ livelihoods, Paganini said that attempts by Paris to block the agreement were “a concern.”
“There’s no room for reopening the negotiations. After 25 years, we arrived at what we think is a very good agreement. In 2019, we started reopening, it took five years. Well, we don’t have any more time. Moreover, the world is changing and not for good for those who believe in rules-based relationships and agreements.”
The outgoing foreign minister was optimistic that the incoming government, a left-wing alliance helmed by former President Jose “Pepe” Mujica, will keep the EU-Mercosur trade deal high on the agenda when it takes power in March.
“They are pragmatic people and they believe in this agreement. So I’m quite sure they will continue to push it,” he added.
