Foreword: the politics of trade policy in Latin America

Abstract

Commercial experiments in Latin America have been extreme, in many cases radical, and in others, guided by the presence of foreign powers that expand their interests in the region (Jordana and Ramió, 2002). In this set of experiences, Latin America is debated among local initiatives based on international pacts that would increase the level of competitiveness and bargaining power of their countries. To date, the region has approximately 30 multilateral organizations, which have been created for integration purposes, but more importantly, with the aim of aligning economic projects with political projects (López-Bermúdez, Freire and Montes, 2018). These, in turn, aligned themselves with the interests of great foreign powers and pursue trade agreements with them in such a way that they also reflect political options. Perhaps the clearest of the differences show the division between economic blocks (Milan et.al. 2015). In 2004, in Havana, Cuba, the Alliance was created Bolivarian, or ALBA, which seeks indigenous commercial integration in Latin America, in response to US claims to establish a free trade area in the Americas (Botto 2015). It is important to emphasize that this commercial bloc, in turn, sought to establish a free trade area under the political doctrine of Bolivarianism - long discussed to this day. Undoubtedly, the political and commercial alignments of ALBA induced the entry of emerging powers such as Russia, China and then Brazil, who also promoted an alternative trade policy to the United States (Bartesaghi, 2015).