Ministerial Meeting of the Andean Community and the European Union
Santiago, Chile, March 28, 2001

Joint Press Release

1. The Ministers of Foreign Relations of the Andean Community and of the European Union met in Santiago, Chile on March 28, 2001 in the course of the Tenth Institutionalized Ministerial Meeting of the European Union and the Rio Group.

2. During the meeting, one of the mechanisms for political dialogue between the Andean Community and the European Union provided for in the 1996 Declaration of Rome, there was an exchange of ideas and views on the state of political and economic affairs in the two regions and on the status of and outlook for bi-regional relations.

3. The Parties expressed their satisfaction over the recent visit made by the Andean Community Secretary General to the institutions of the European Union and over the open discussion of matters of common interest to the two regions.

4. The Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to back and promote democracy with participation and the full and transparent operation of democratic institutions.

5. The Ministers reviewed political events in the Andean region and expressed their pleasure at the resumption of negotiations between the Government of Colombia and the FARC and the maintenance of the demilitarized zone, as well as over the preliminary agreement reached by that government with the ELN to guarantee a zone of rapprochement. The Parties have agreed on the need to achieve lasting peace through negotiation and on respect for the constitutional state, human rights, and international humanitarian legislation. The Ministers underscored the importance of the role played by the International Community and by the group of countries supporting a peaceful resolution. They expressed their pleasure at the invitation extended by the Commission to host the third meeting of the support group for peace in Brussels this coming April 30^th.

6. The Ministers expressed their backing for the consolidation of a democratic system in Ecuador and have looked with favor on the efforts made to resolve the country’s economic problems within a framework of democracy and transparency. They urged the international community to cooperate with Ecuador in addressing these matters.

7. Both Parties expressed their support for the efforts of the Peruvian Government to restore democracy and reestablish institutional order and full respect for human rights in the country, as well as to ensure that the national elections reflect the will of the people. The important contribution made by the European Union to Peru’s electoral process is an expression of that support.

8. The Ministers highlighted the significance of the WTO as the most important forum for contributing, in a gradual and mutually beneficial way, to the multilateral liberalization of trade by establishing basic principles and rules for the international trading system that will be conducive to a more equitable distribution of the benefits of globalization.

They pointed up the importance of making major strides in the negotiations that are underway, particularly in the areas of agriculture and services, and in the application of agreements reached in keeping with the Uruguay Round.

The Ministers further emphasized the importance of launching a new general round at the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the WTO in Qatar, based on a balanced working program that would take due account of the interests of all of the members of the multilateral trading system. That round should be directed particularly toward strengthening market access without excluding any sector a priori and toward developing and bolstering WTO rules and disciplines, as well as toward promoting a better integration of the developing countries with the multilateral trading system.

The Ministers also insisted on the need to move ahead with WTO cooperation projects that are designed to reinforce the technical and institutional capacity of the developing countries, and particularly of the less developed nations.

The Ministers stressed the need for a transparent preparatory process –even for the Fourth Ministerial Conference— involving all of the members of the WTO, and for civil society to have access to information and to be given an opportunity to take part in the dialogue before and during the conference.

The Ministers called attention to the importance of resisting protectionist pressures brought to bear particularly by the strongest trading partners and of avoiding the adoption of any measure not in keeping with WTO rules that could have an adverse impact on trade flows, especially in sectors of special interest to the developing countries.

9. The Parties highlighted the efforts of the Andean Community General Secretariat and of the European Community to draw up the terms of reference of the "study that will make it possible to have a diagnosis of the present status of and prospects for the economic and trading relations between the two regions," in compliance with the mandate handed down in the Vilamoura declaration of February 24, 2000.

10. In this context, the Parties commended the adoption of the terms of reference of the cited study and agreed on the need to speed up its performance. The Andean Ministers expressed a special interest in having the study be completed before the Madrid Summit. In that way, a decision can be made on giving a new structure to European-Andean relations, in light of the desire to move ahead with the negotiation of an Association Agreement, while not precluding the maintenance of established GSP preferences until the new agreement becomes operational.

11. The Ministers recognized the positive socioeconomic effects deriving from the special tariff preferences regime granted by the European Union to the Andean Community, which supports the efforts of the Andean countries in their war on drugs. For that reason, the Andean Ministers underscored the importance of extending this special regime until the new design of European-Andean relations becomes effective, making it possible to place the trade and investment between the two regions on stronger foundations.

12. The Ministers agreed, at their next institutional meetings, to continue exchanging views on the future of European-Andean relations, in light of the new momentum given to international and interregional relations by globalization and technology.

13. The Ministers took note of the positive direction taken by the institutionalized political dialogue with the Andean countries on the war against drugs and related crimes based on the principle of co-responsibility. They expressed their trust in the continuation of this sustained effort, voicing their support for the prompt holding of the Sixth High-Level Meeting on Drugs and the Fourth Meeting on Chemical Precursors.

14. Furthermore, the Ministers expressed their satisfaction over Bolivia’s success in eradicating illegal coca plantations and underscored the importance of supporting concrete actions by the international community to guarantee that these results are sustained.

15. The Ministers indicated their interest in promptly holding the next institutionalized meetings between the Andean countries and the European Community, such as the meetings of the Mixed Commission and Mixed Subcommissions on Industry and Trade and on Science and Technology, which have shown themselves to be suitable mechanisms for strengthening the political, social, economic, and cultural bonds between the two regions and adjusting to the challenges posed by the twenty-first century.

16. In concluding, the Ministers expressed their pleasure at the progress made in following-up the Rio de Janeiro Summit and indicated their support for the continued reinforcement of their relations, and particularly at the efforts made to continue consolidating and deepening the architecture of bi-regional relations started in the 90s.