MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Paraguay ready to receive Lord Cameron to increase links with UK

Asuncion, the capital on the river Paraguay, an affluent of the mighty Paraná waterway, the lifeline of the landlocked country

Paraguay has announced that on Tuesday, 20 February British Foreign Secretary, David Cameron will be making his first official visit to the country, ”a significant milestone in the bilateral relation between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Paraguay.

Foreign Secretary Cameron will be meeting president Santiago Pe;a and foreign minister Ruben Martinez Lezcano exploring venues to improve cooperation in the areas of trade, sustainable growth, education and human rights.

The Paraguayan release says that the visit of the British cabinet minister is geared to strengthen the existing links between the two nations and underline the UK commitment with nations of the region, building bridges and promoting diplomatic relations in the framework of mutual respect and shared values.

In recent years Paraguay and UK have experienced an important convergence of interests that has helped to deepen links.

As Paraguay becomes a more affirmative voice in the international scene, the Cameron visit is an opportunity to collaborate in issues of regional and global interest. Paraguay has shown in recent years its capacity to a strong economic recovery, in a difficult world context which is also an enormous potential to increase collaboration with the United Kingdom

Let us add that Paraguay is a full and founding member of the South American trade block Mercosur, next to Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, but contrary to its partners that have China as their main international trade partner, Paraguay remains closely linked to Taiwan, one of the very few countries on that course.

Paraguay is mainly an agriculture country belonging to the short list of global soybean and beef exporters. The landlocked country has borders with Argentina and Brazil, taking advantage of the many times eclectic functioning of the two regional giants economies.

Paraguay is also the world’s first exporter of hydroelectricity, sharing hydro dams with Brazil and Argentina, Itaipu (world's largest operational hydro complex) and Yaciretá respectively. The country's economic performance has been stable for years, with sustained growth and minimum inflation.

Despite a long relation with Britain going back to the XIXth, century, UK re-opened its embassy in Asunción in April 2016. Lord Cameron will be arriving from the Falkland Islands. From Paraguay he will fly to Rio, Brazil for the G20 meeting of foreign ministers Wednesday.