MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Peru's President lands in Chile for bilateral talks

Castillo is to meet Boric early Tuesday and has a busy agenda ahead of him

Peru's President Pedro Castillo Terrones and his entourage landed in Santiago on an official tour during which he is to participate in the IV Peru-Chile Binational Cabinet, among other engagements.

The head of state's mission seeks to boost bilateral trade and cooperation, it was explained. The agenda also includes meetings between ministers and an appearance by Castillo before the Peru-Chile Business Council, in addition to the signing of a Declaration and other announcements yet to be confirmed.

Castillo is to meet his Chilean colleague Gabriel Boric Font at La Moneda at 8.30 local time, after laying a wreath of flowers at the Bernardo O Higgins monument. Shortly afterward, the Peruvian leader is to get together with representatives of the Peru-Chile Business Council.

Joining Castillo for his trip were Ministers Alejandro Salas (Labor), Silvana Robles (Culture), and Kelly Portalatino (Health), while Ministers Daniel Barragan (Defense), Willy Huerta (Interior), Eduardo Mora (Production), Roberto Sanchez (Foreign Trade and Tourism), Kurt Burneo (Economy and Finance), Wilbert Rozas (Environment), and Oliverio Muñoz (Energy and Mines) were also to arrive in Chile.

Castillo is expected to discuss the following issues while in Chile: Social and cultural integration; security and defense; foreign trade, investments, tourism, and cooperation in science and technology; environment, energy and mining, and sustainable development; border development and integration; and infrastructure matters.

Both heads of state are expected to sign a joint declaration and also to review the question of the VII Meeting of the Permanent Committee for Consultation and Political Coordination, also known as the 2+2 Mechanism, which brings together the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense of both countries.

Binational cabinets are the highest level of bilateral cooperation. The last Peru-Chile Binational Cabinet convened in 2019, in the city of Paracas, but continuity was lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Nov. 17 last, Peru's Congress allowed Castillo to make this trip but banned him from attending the XVII Summit of the Pacific Alliance to be held in Mexico City between Nov. 24 and 26, during which Peru was to receive the pro-tempore presidency of the bloc. But in light of Lima's Congressional disapproval, hosting President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) canceled the event.

Castillo has just been forced to reshuffle the Cabinet after Congress denied Prime Minister Aníbal Torres a motion of confidence vote, forcing him to resign. Betssy Chávez was appointed to succeed him.

Read also: Castillo appoints new Peruvian Prime Minister