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OAS Round Table Examined the Challenges of Multilateralism in America and Europe

The challenges of multilateral interaction in America and Europe were the central subject of the XXIII OAS Policy Round Table, titled, “The European Union and the Americas: The challenges of Multilateralism,” held today at Organization of American States (OAS) headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Moderated by Ambassador Alfonso Quiñónez, OAS Executive Secretary for Integral Development, the event featured journalists, opinion leaders and researchers who analyzed the relationship between the two continents and the importance of multilateralism in tackling common challenges. The panel discussion included Darío Valcárcel, Editorial Director of Estudios de Política Exterior S. A., and Peter Hakim, President Emeritus of the Inter-American Dialogue.

Describing the current scenario of the interaction between the two multilateral bodies, Ambassador Quiñónez highlighted recent cooperation initiatives between the European Union and the OAS and their common interests and challenges, offering as an example a recent cooperation agreement signed by the two organizations that currently is in the process of being implemented. He also recalled that 26 of 27 members of the European Union are Permanent Observers of the Organization and that the Union itself has the status of Permanent Observer. And he mentioned that this year will be held the European Union, Latin America and Caribbean Summit in Madrid, Spain.

“Certainly our two regions are natural allies,” Quiñónez said, for their historic, cultural and social ties, among others, adding that “there is always the opportunity to strengthen this relationship.”

For his part, the President Emeritus of the Inter-American Dialogue called Europe “the gold standard for multilateralism,” for, among other things, its initiatives of support to “poorer countries” of the continent, the existence of a single central bank and common economic rules and the binding character of the decisions of the European court.

“Europe has common policies on a wide range of issues,” said Hakim, not found in the American form of multilateralism.

For his part, Darío Valcárcel called democracy “an invention” that is not limited to “guaranteeing the holding of elections in a country,” but intended for countries to govern themselves democratically between elections.

In Europe, notwithstanding, he said, “the progress that Latin America has achieved in the last 20 years” in the practice of democracy is viewed as “gigantic.”

The panelists’ bios can be found here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-153/10