The Pacific Alliance announced on Wednesday the beginning of the process of incorporating Ecuador into the Pacific Alliance as a full member.

Earlier, this Friday, Mexico and Ecuador agreed to pre-close negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between them.

The announcement of the process to join Ecuador to the Pacific Alliance was included in the Joint Declaration of the XVI Summit of that bloc, held in Colombia.

The Pacific Alliance Summit was attended by the presidents of Chile, Sebastián Piñera; from Colombia, Ivan Duque; of Peru, Pedro Castillo, and the Secretary of the Treasury of Mexico, Rogelio Ramírez de la O.

Ecuador

«Our satisfaction at starting the process of incorporating Ecuador into the Pacific Alliance as a full member, which will strengthen trade integration ties in the region,» the officials said.

To this end, the officials mandated the High Level Group to begin work during the first quarter in accordance with the guidelines for the accession of the Pacific Alliance agreed in Mexico in May 2014.

They also expressed their satisfaction for the signing, by the Pacific Alliance Free Trade Commission, of the Decisions on the elimination of technical barriers to trade in the Domestic Cleaning Products and Medical Devices sectors, which facilitate the commercial flow of safe, high-quality products between our countries.

Likewise, they expressed their satisfaction for the signing of the interinstitutional agreement between their customs that enables the electronic exchange of international trade data through Customs Declarations.

They were also satisfied with the approval of the Action Plan to accelerate the creation of digital talent, which will facilitate and speed up the training of the regional population to promote growth, productivity and employment by promoting the Regional Digital Market.

Another point they highlighted was the adoption of the new Work Plan between the Pacific Alliance and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations for the period 2021-2025, which seeks to deepen the relationship between the two blocs based on lines of action for cooperation in matters of mutual interest.

They also committed to the implementation of the Presidential Declaration of the Pacific Alliance on Creative Economy, which identifies priority areas to promote the reactivation of a sector that has been strongly affected by the pandemic.