Like South Korea wants to open access to South American business, it will need to prove that it is not just a competitor interested in extracting natural resources but a reliable partner committed to revitalizing manufacturing industries, according to observers.
On Monday, the President of South Korea Lee Jae Myung and the President of Brazil Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva agreed to revive talks on a free trade agreement between South Korea and Mercosur, the South American trade union.
A joint working group will be established to prepare a formal declaration to resume negotiations there Mercosur summit in December, according to a joint statement issued after their meeting in Brasília.
Analysts, however, warn that skepticism about the plan remains strong across the region, especially internally Brazilindustrial sector. To win support in Latin America, Seoul should show tangible commitments through investments and technology transfers — not just diplomatic rhetoric, they say.
South Korea-Mercosur trade talks, which began in 2018, have stalled since late 2021 amid concerns that rising Korean imports could harm the region’s industrial base.
