Uruguay
Orsi and Lula spoke in New York about trade, integration and a possible transfer of the meat quota to Brazil and Australia
The presidents of Uruguay and Brazil held a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. According to Lula, they also discussed the use of part of the Uruguayan quota for beef exports to China that would not be used this year.
Yamandú Orsi met this Monday in New York with Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. After the meeting, both leaders highlighted an agenda focused on trade, infrastructure, regional integration and other bilateral issues.
According to what Orsi posted on his social media, he and Lula discussed a “concrete agenda” on trade, shared infrastructure, productive development, integration and the regulation of sports betting. He also said they talked about the need to strengthen multilateralism, deepen integration through Celac and Mercosur, expand trade cooperation and continue working on border issues and cultural exchange.
Lula, for his part, said they also discussed Latin American and Caribbean integration, as well as the threats of political extremism and disinformation in the region and in the world. On the bilateral agenda, he mentioned infrastructure and agricultural trade issues, and expressed interest in learning about Uruguay’s experience in regulating online betting.
The Brazilian president also thanked Orsi, according to what he posted on X, for authorizing Brazil to use part of the surplus from Uruguay’s quota for beef exports to China. According to la diaria, the deputy foreign minister, Valeria Csukasi, explained that this is part of the quota that Uruguay would not use this year. The Uruguayan quota is 324,000 tons.
Csukasi told la diaria that Brazil and Australia asked whether they could access, exceptionally and only for this year, a portion of the quota that Uruguay would not be able to fill. She clarified that the decision does not depend on Montevideo, Brasília or Canberra, but on the Chinese authorities, particularly the Ministry of Commerce, and that Uruguay only said it would agree to cede part of the unused quota to both countries if China authorizes it.
According to Búsqueda, Csukasi said Uruguay has used 31% of its quota and maintained that, even if the transfer goes ahead, tons will still remain available for the Uruguayan industry. She also stressed that this situation does not compromise the future use of the quota assigned to the country.
Búsqueda added that the Minister of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries, Alfredo Fratti, said he was not aware of the matter and that what Lula announced “would be news.” That outlet also reported that China granted Uruguay a beef export quota of 324,000 tons with a 12% tariff, while outside that quota the tariff is 55%.
In parallel, Lula raised the intention of meeting with Orsi again soon to advance cross-border integration projects, especially the construction of the binational bridge over the Yaguarón River.
Also in New York, Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin took part in a meeting of foreign ministers from Celac, a bloc that Uruguay currently chairs. At the end of the meeting, the foreign ministers issued a joint statement calling for the next person in charge of the UN Secretary-General’s office to be from Latin America and the Caribbean, in the name of a more inclusive and representative international system.
Sources
About this note. Written by El Notero with the assistance of artificial intelligence, based on what was published by the cited outlet. El Notero did not do any original reporting on this event.
