The negotiations between the EU and Mercosul with the objective to set up a strategic bi-regional partnership and a trade agreement are stagnant since the year 2004. Even with the interruption of the negotiation process, the trade flows between the two regions have been increasing substantially, and the EU has consolidated its position as the main source of Foreign Direct Investment in the Mercosul. On the other hand, one of the consequences of the global crisis is the retrocession of the role of Multilateral Institutions, particularly the case of the World Trade Organization, which stimulate the retaking of inter-regional block negotiations. In this relative new world configuration, the adoption of the Lisbon Treaty by all the EU-members introduces changes in the European institutional design of regional integration, which have affected the normative framework of international negotiations. The aim of the present paper is to address the effects of the Lisbon Treaty on the foreign trade policy of the EU, as well as the effects on the relationships between the EU and Latin America.
European Institutions; Lisbon Treaty; Common Commercial Policy; Mercosul
