Twenty years of strategic relations between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean (1999-2019): analysis of the evolution of its “three pillars”

Abstract

The article focuses on bi-regional relations between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean within the framework of European foreign policy. Its basic objective is to examine the evolution of the fundamental “three pillars” around which these relations have been articulated: political dialogue, cooperation and trade—in a more or less broad sense—since 1999, in which the “Strategic Association” was formed, which channels bi-regional relations. The central interpretative hypothesis of the work is that Latin America has not been a priority in the framework of the foreign policy of the European Union. Relations have been maintained with a degree of asymmetry and, although progress has been made on some relevant issues, it is argued that none of the “three pillars” have seen substantial results, neither from the point of view of the development and improvement of economic, social and political conditions in Latin America, nor from that of European influence in the region. It is argued that in EU-LAC relations some issues that are considered key, such as migration, cooperation in education, and external debt management, among others, have been ignored. Finally, it is suggested that EU-LAC relations can and should be deepened and that the Latin American region can be an indispensable strategic ally of the European Union.