ANDEAN COUNTRIES AND MERCOSUR AGREEMENT

TRADE AGREEMENTS World Trade Organization - WTO Free Trade Area of the Americas - FTAA Andean Community The Group of Three (G-3) Colombia - Chile Agreement Andean Countries and Mercosur Agreement Colombia - Caricom Agreement Colombia - Panama Agreement Others

The Andean Community (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela) and Mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) signed an Economic Complementation Agreement in December 2002, with the main objective of establishing a Free Trade Area in the short term. In December 2003, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela and Mercosur signed a new Economic Complementation Agreement, establishing a Free Trade Area between the parties, which entered into in force in Colombia by the Decree 141 of January 26, 2005.

The Agreement takes into account the asymmetries due to the different levels of economic development of the parties, which is reflected in the phase-out schedules of 8 to 15 years for Andean countries and Paraguay and Uruguay compared to 6 to 12 years for Brazil and Argentina. The Agreement provides for the elimination of all tariffs and non-tariff barriers on goods by 2018.

In addition to market access in goods, this Agreement covers disciplines on rules of origin, safeguards, SPS measures, trade remedies, technical regulations, intellectual property, and dispute settlement.

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