Lima, Sept. 20, 2006.- The Ministers of Foreign Affairs and of Foreign Trade of the Andean Community formalized Chile’s incorporation into the CAN through the approval today, in New York, of Community legislation (Decision 645) granting it the status of Associate Member Country.

At an enlarged meeting of the Andean Foreign Ministers with the CAN Commission in New York during the United Nations General Assembly, the Andean Ministers agreed to set up a Joint Commission that will meet before the year is out to define, within a period of 180 days, the scope of Chile’s participation in the Cartagena Agreement’s organs, mechanisms and measures.

The Joint Commission will consist of high-level representatives of the Andean Community Member Countries, on the one hand, and of Chile, on the other and will enjoy the technical support of the CAN General Secretariat.

In the course of the meeting, Foreign Ministers David Choquehuanca, of Bolivia; María Consuelo Araújo, of Colombia; Francisco Carrión, of Ecuador and José Antonio García Belaunde, of Peru, agreed to underscore the importance of the Decision that had been approved and pointed out that Chile’s incorporation into the CAN will strengthen the Andean Community.

The Acting Secretary General of the Andean Community, Alfredo Fuentes, for his part, stated that the Agreement will boost not only trade between the CAN and Chile --which showed record growth of 38 percent during the first six months of this year-- -, but also Chile’s integration into the economic, political and social areas and will, furthermore, reinforce the CAN’s external projection.

The CAN reached the decision to grant Chile the status of Associate Member in light of the fact that the two parties have signed economic complementarity agreements for the purpose of gradually attaining free trade, thereby fulfilling the essential condition for Associate Membership.

In effect, Chile has signed bilateral Economic Complementarity Agreements (ECA) with Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru to permit the free circulation of goods and services and to regulate other areas of their bilateral relations.

Between 1969 and 1976, Chile was part of the CAN. In August of this year, after receiving an invitation from the four CAN Member Countries, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet confirmed that her country would start the process to become an Associate Member. This process was formalized today in New York and will be perfected by the Joint Commission created by the two parties that will start meeting this year.