“Clearly, it’s not a good sign,” the minister told the press after appearing before the Senate committee analyzing the government’s five-year budget proposal.

“We need to wait and see what happens and whether this will negatively affect what we are about to sign on December 20,” he said, referring to the trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union.

“It’s not a good sign for strengthening Mercosur,” he stated.

“Hopefully, we can maintain Mercosur.

I believe it’s essential for Uruguay. And hopefully, we can move forward with this agreement with the European Union, which I believe will be crucial for all our countries,” he emphasized. Earlier, President Yamandu Orsi said that the implementation of the agreement needs to be closely monitored.

He discussed the matter over the weekend with the new US ambassador to Uruguay, Lou Rinaldi.

He also expressed interest in speaking with Argentine President Javier Milei.

“Perhaps it would be easier in a one-on-one meeting,” he predicted.

Orsi even expressed optimism, noting that Uruguay is in a position “to take advantage of the situation,” a scenario that some experts view differently.

For his part, Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin traveled to Buenos Aires to meet with the new Argentine Foreign Minister, Pablo Quirno.

“What we’ve received from the media is all very biased.

When I travel to Argentina, we’ll understand a little more,” he remarked regarding the trade agreement between Washington and Buenos Aires.

abo/arm/mem/ool