You should never neglect distant relatives. A two-day summit between the 27 heads of government of the European Union and 33 leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean discussed trade and raw materials, Ukraine and the history of slavery. But most of all, it was about how to deal with distant cousins you haven’t seen in eight years and who you need now more than ever.
“We haven’t paid enough attention to it,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said of Latin America. “Now we have to take action and [daarbij] take into account the new geopolitical scenario, with the rise of China and a new role for Russia.”
More than ever, the European Union is involved in a battle for the favor of countries where China and Russia regularly make attractive offers. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the West also had to learn that not all countries intend to choose between Kyiv and Moscow. So the Ukraine coalition launched a multifaceted diplomatic offensive – also in Latin America. That is sometimes a difficult conversation.
While the heads of government spoke to each other in groups and collectively, diplomats tinkered with a joint statement on Ukraine until the last moment. Some countries saw no point in condemning the Russian invasion. The EU insisted. It ended up being a pale text, in which the countries merely express their concern about the war and the humanitarian suffering it causes, as well as its damaging economic consequences. Nicaragua could not agree to that either.
UN resolution
The EU guests are organized in CELAC, a loose regional association of the Western Hemisphere, minus Canada and the US. Most CELAC countries voted last spring in favor of a UN resolution condemning the raid. Nicaragua then voted against, a number of countries – Bolivia, Cuba and El Salvador – abstained. The final statement referred to that vote at the UN, with which a condemnation of Russia ended up in the text.
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A leading country like Brazil, under left-wing president Luiz ‘Lula’ da Silva, wants to condemn the raid, but does not intend to support Western sanctions against Russia. Dutch-born Chilean Foreign Minister Alberto van Klaveren Stork expressed his regret “that there are members of our group who block any resolution.” He stressed: “We really believe there is a war of aggression going on.”
In the past, we often did not pick up the phone when they called with concerns they had. So there is great irritation in many countries
Mark Rutte outgoing prime minister
On arrival, outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte said guiltily that the main thing is that the West now recognizes that it did not respond in the past, when countries from Africa or Latin America knocked on the door for help. “In the past, we often did not answer the phone when they called with concerns they had. So there is great irritation in many countries,” now that the West is asking for a favor. It is now mainly about rebuilding communication, says Rutte, and that means: “90 percent listening and 10 percent talking.”
Economic weight
Good contact with distant relatives is also important because China is becoming increasingly active in the region. In the first two decades of this century, China’s economic weight in Latin America has increased enormously.
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The EU already has a trade deal with 27 countries in the region, but a promising deal with the Mercosur countries has failed to materialize. In 2019, the EU concluded an agreement with the Mercosur customs union (Mercado Común del Sur), of which Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay are members. Both sides now want to update the deal. Argentina and Brazil are afraid that they will deteriorate economically. A number of European countries, including the Netherlands, want extra guarantees for sustainability, in particular about the future of the Amazon.
After the summit, Rutte and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen assumed that a deal could be completed by the end of the year. According to Von der Leyen, a modernized version of a trade agreement between the EU and Mexico can also be completed within a few months.
Badly paid
There was a lot of resentment on the part of Latin Americans about a relationship that has often been based purely on exploitation. Lula spoke of the need “to end the international division of labor that condemns Latin America to supplying raw materials and migrants for a labor force that is poorly paid and discriminated against.”
However, the impression that Europe is still hungry for raw materials could not be completely dispelled. Eagerly, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signed agreements with Chile and Uruguay, among others, on ‘cooperation’ in the extraction and trade of rare raw materials crucial to the energy transition.
The colonial past always played a role in the background. Several Latin American countries demanded a reference to the transatlantic slave trade and possible reparations in the final statement. Rotating CELAC Chairman and Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Ralph Gonsalves spoke of the need to address the “historical legacies of indigenous genocide and enslavement of African bodies.” The closing statement said: “We deeply recognize and deeply regret the undisclosed suffering inflicted on millions of men, women and children as a result of the transatlantic slave trade.”
The countries agreed to visit each other every two years in the future.