PARAMARIBO, Suriname, CMC – The Suriname government says it favors the reactivation of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), the South American bloc, which had dominated for several years.
President Chandrikapersad Santokhi is due in Brazil later on Monday to attend the UNASUR Heads of State meeting specially convened by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio ‘Lula’ da Silva as he seeks to revive the organization.
Brazil’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauro Vieira, had traveled to Suriname on May 12 to hand over an invitation to President Santokhi to attend the summit.
In a statement here, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Business, and International Cooperation said UNASUR offers excellent cooperation opportunities through solid regional unity.
It said that a two-day meeting in Brasilia aims to promote peaceful dialogue at the highest political level and identify common aspects for the resumption of integration and cooperation in South America.
The ministry said that the need for this exists because the political mechanism of the UNASUR, which aimed to promote regional unity and address common challenges in areas such as economics, politics, social development, and infrastructure, has been inactive and paralyzed for some time now.
As of 2018, seven countries, namely Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Uruguay, had unilaterally denounced UNASUR’s treaty, resulting in Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela, and Bolivia as existing members. Suriname is one of the founders of the organization.
In 2019, countries such as Uruguay and Bolivia signaled that dialogue at the highest political level is paramount to the region, and in 2023, President Alberto Fernández announced Argentina’s return to UNASUR. In addition, President Lula recently indicated that the UNASUR treaty still applies to Brazil by legal provisions.
According to the Surinamese government, the agenda for the summit offers the opportunity to present perspectives, ideas, concerns, and proposals as well as to make an evaluation of the status of the region, a joint constructive strategy or solution models for the everyday challenges in the field of health, defense, infrastructure, energy transition, climate change, the fight against transnational crime.
The heads of government of Argentina, Guyana, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, Uruguay, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Peru will attend the meeting.
The statement said President Santokhi would also use this opportunity to hold several bilateral meetings with the ministry here, hoping that the meeting “should result in a permanent inclusive cooperation mechanism at the regional level.”
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