Power and Regionalism in Latin America: The Politics of MERCOSUR

Appendix B

229 Appendix B Chronology of Patterns of Cooperation and Conflict in MERCOSUR, 1991–2010 July 1986 Presidents Alfonsín (Argentina) and Sarney (Brazil) sign the Argentine-­ Brazilian Integration Act, establishing the Program of Integration and Economic Cooperation (PICE). Nov. 1988 Alfonsín and Sarney sign the Treaty of Integration, Cooperation , and Development. July 1990 Presidents Menem (Argentina) and Collor de Mello (Brazil) sign the Buenos Aires Act. Mar. 1991 Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay sign the Treaty of Asunción, creating MERCOSUR. Oct. 1992 Argentina increases statistical taxes on imports. Aug. 1993 Argentina reduces CET on capital goods. Sept.1994 Brazil reduces tariff levels on a number of products, including automobiles, toys, and capital goods, to 20%. Dec. 1994 MERCOSUR partners sign the Protocol of Ouro Preto, launching the customs union. A preliminary automobile agreement (Decision 29/94) is signed by Argentina and Brazil. Mar. 1995 Brazil increases tariff levels on automobiles to 70%. June 1995 Brazil introduces a new automobile regime. Jan. 1996 Argentina and Brazil sign the Werneck-­ Magariños Agreement over trade in automobile products. 230 Appendix B Mar. 1997 Brazil introduces restrictions on import financing to contain balance-­of-­payments pressures. Sept. 1997 Argentina increases the tariffs on intraregional imports of sugar. Jan. 1999 Brazil floats its currency, leading to a significant devaluation of the real. Feb. 1999 Presidents Menem (Argentina) and Cardoso (Brazil) agree to create a special commission to monitor bilateral trade flows and to propose solutions for imbalances. July 13, 1999 Argentina introduces safeguards measures on textile imports from China, Pakistan, and Brazil. July 26, 1999 Argentina introduces a resolution (Res. 911) permitting the use of the LAIA safeguards regime within MERCOSUR. Brazil reacts to Argentina’s violations by suspending all regional negotiations and calling for an emergency GMC meeting. July 29, 1999 Argentina withdraws Res. 911 and bilateral negotiations are restored. Aug. 1999 Brazil files a WTO complaint against Argentina over textile restrictions. Aug. 1999 Argentina introduces restrictions (Res. 508/99 and 977/99) on imports of Brazilian footwear products. In response, Brazil announces the decision to retaliate by reimposing licensing requirements on the imports of more than four hundred Argentine products. Sept. 1999 Argentine and Brazilian footwear producers (CIC and ABICALÇADOS) begin negotiations for the establishment of a VER. They reach an agreement by the end of the month. Mar. 2000 WTO rules in favor of Brazil, requesting Argentina to withdraw safeguards measures. Mar. 2000 Argentina and Brazil reach a provisional agreement over the common automobile policy. June 2000 Argentina and Brazil sign an agreement “relaunching” MERCOSUR. Aug. 2000 Argentina changes local content requirements for vehicles produced in Argentina, leading Brazil to suspend provisional automobile agreements signed in June. Dec. 2000 Argentina and Brazil reach a new automobile agreement. Mar. 2001 Argentine president de la Rúa appoints Domingo Cavallo as finance minister. Cavallo introduces unilateral changes in Appendix B 231 Argentina’s CET, increasing the external tariff on consumer goods to 35% and reducing the external tariff of capital goods to 0%. Apr. 2001 Argentina agrees to remove IT and telecommunication products from the list of capital goods that face an elimination of external tariffs. Brazil agrees to grant its neighbor a temporary “waiver,” which allows Buenos Aires to maintain the measures until the end of 2002. July 2001 Argentina introduces Resolution 258/01, which reduces tariffs on imports of automobiles, IT products, and telecommunications products from non-­ MERCOSUR countries. Brazil initially threatens to suspend commercial negotiations with Argentina but eventually adopts a conciliatory stance. Sept. 2001 Cavallo’s public statements criticizing the devaluation of the Brazilian currency trigger a new diplomatic crisis between Argentina and Brazil. Oct. 2001 In an emergency meeting, Argentina and Brazil agree to negotiate the establishment of a compensation mechanism to manage the difficulties derived from the exchange rate asymmetries between the two countries. Dec. 2001 Argentine president de la Rúa resigns and is replaced by Adolfo Rodríguez Saá. President Rodríguez Saá announces Argentina will suspend payments on its external debt. Jan. 2002 Eduardo Duhalde replaces Rodríguez Saá as Argentine president . Argentina officially abandons the convertibility regime and adopts a floating exchange rate regime. The peso suffers a 30% depreciation. Feb. 19, 2002 The Olivos Protocol, changing MERCOSUR’s dispute settlement procedures and establishing a Permanent Review Tribunal , is signed. Mar. 2003 Argentina and Brazil reinitiate negotiations over the common automobile regime. June 2003 Presidents Néstor Kirchner (Argentina) and Lula da Silva (Brazil ) agree at a MERCOSUR Summit to...