The Political Dialogue between Latin America and the Caribbean, and the European Union

The article examines the political dialogue between the European Union (EU) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). It is divided into four sections. In the first, the author analyzes the weight the EU gives to political dialogue in its foreign affairs. In the second, she examines the evolution of European-Latin American dialogue since the beginning of European Economic Community-LAC relations, and the EU-Rio Group institutional dialogue, up to the new dialogues that have developed among the EU and the Southern Cone Common Market, the Caribbean, Chile and Mexico. In the third section, she analyzes the main European speakers in the biregional political dialogue, particularly of the countries that have shown special interest in the American subcontinent like Germany, Spain, France and Great Britain. She also studies the role of other bodies that make their voices heard, such as the nongovernmental organizations and transnational companies. In the fourth section, Arrieta reflects on the need to deepen biregional relations and urge them forward. In this respect, she insists that following the European-Latin American Summit, Latin America has to take advantage of the institutionalization of political dialogue at the highest level in order for Europe to continue contributing to the reactivation of the Latin American economy. In relation to Mexico, the author underlines its growing role in the strengthening of biregional relations.