New Latin American Bloc excludes US, Canada

[CougarKing]

I wonder how this will affect the OAS?

Associated Press link

PLAYA DE CARMEN, Mexico – Latin America and Caribbean leaders united Tuesday to create a regional bloc excluding Canada and the United States, but its birth was undermined by a spat in which the Colombian president told Venezuela's Hugo Chavez "to be a man."

Many of the 32 Latin American and Caribbean countries participating in the summit have long called for a new organization that will not be dominated by the interests of their two wealthy northern neighbors. The Washington-based Organization of American States, the largest diplomatic bloc in the Western Hemisphere, has been heavily influenced by the United States.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon, who hosted the summit in a Caribbean resort, said the bloc "will consolidate and globally project a Latin American and Caribbean identity."

Latin American countries, however, have competing interests of their own — a point driven home by bickering at the summit.

At a dinner Monday night, conservative Colombian President Alvaro Uribe started complaining about Venezuela's trade sanctions against Colombia, according to an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because delegations at the meeting had agreed not to discuss the spat publicly.
(...) 

 

[1911CoLt45]

Hmmm

Maybe Mexico is going to be cancelling its membership to the North American Union if that would to ever happen. 

 

[a_majoor]

Canada has free trade agreements with Mexico, Chile, Peru, Columbia and Costa Rica, as welll as having negotiations ongoing with the following:

Negotiations toward a Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement Pending

Canada - Andean Community Countries Free Trade Discussions Pending

Canada - Caribbean Community Free Trade Negotiations (CARICOM) Pending

Canada - Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement Negotiations Pending

Canada - Central America Four (CA4)

(source http://www.international.gc.ca/trade-agreements-accords-commerciaux/agr-acc/index.aspx?lang=en#free)

It seems this new organization may be a forum to vent anti-American rhetoric for local consumption (although I thought everyone was supposed to love America now that "the one" is President), but based on the FTA's and negotiations, I suspect most of these nations would be rather adverse to being shut out of the largest integrated economy on Earth.

 

[Journeyman]

I suspect most of these nations would be rather adverse to being shut out of the largest integrated economy on Earth.

...factoring in Hugo Chavez often displaying the rationality and international relations acumen of Idi Amin


...without the kilt fetish 

 

[Edward Campbell]

An Americas forum, of whatever sort, that excludes Canada and the USA perforce allows Brazil to be undisputed top dog and Mexico and Argentina to duke it out for the number two spot and so on.  Brazil, especially, is trying very hard to live up to its (manufactured) promise. I remain confident that in this, as in so many other things, the front half of the BRIC, Brazil and Russia, will, yet again, find a way to seize defeat from the jaws of victory.