South American Union

[Hadji]

By Raymond Colitt

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Twelve South American countries founded a union on Friday aimed at boosting economic integration and political cohesion, but the region's bitter rivalries stymied ambitious plans on defense and trade.

The heads of states signed a treaty that creates the South American Union of Nations, or Unasur, as well as plans for energy, infrastructure and financing projects.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva hailed Unasur, which aspires to become like the European Union, as a sign that South America was becoming a "global actor" and said the differences between governments were a sign of vitality.

"The instability some want to see in our continent is a sign of life, especially political life," he said. "There's no democracy without people (protesting) in the streets."

Unasur includes a rotating presidency, biannual meetings of foreign ministers and a parliament in Bolivia, marking progress toward greater unity in a region that is enjoying a period of relative economic stability.

As the major regional power, Brazil has for years been trying to unite South America as a counterbalance to U.S. and European economic interests in the region.

But South America has been strained by political divisions pitting U.S. critics such as Bolivia and Venezuela that favor state intervention in the economy against market-friendly countries like Chile and Colombia, with closer U.S. ties.

The new group falls short of ambitious plans for economic and security integration, including the original intention to merge the South American customs union Mercosur and the Andean Community trading bloc. Continued...

http://www.reuters.com/article/world...29031720080523

[M@k@veli]

yo Bilderberg freut sich läuft alles nach Plan.