政治多极化和经济全球化大趋势下的拉丁美洲

Globalization provides Latin America with a good opportunity to acquire more foreign capital, modern technology, management skills and overseas market shares. However, Latin America needs to strengthen its international competitiveness so as to gain more benefits from globalization and protect national interests. Regional integration is one way of uniting together to seek a path that might lead to common prosperity in the region. It can also help the region to avoid the unfavorable side effects of globalization. Regarding the establishment of a Free Trade Area in the Americas (FTAA) by the year 2005, Latin American countries and the U.S. still have different views and divergent positions. While the U.S. intends to form FTAA on the base of the existing NAFTA, Latin American countries, particularly Brazil, would like to realize it by taking advantage of MERCUSUR. As European Union (EU) has become the second largest trade partner for Latin America, it is likely that MERCOSUR members and some other countries will move closer towards EU than to NAFTA. While a few countries in South America might become a spot of world attention, political stability in the region will be well maintained. In terms of its relations with the U.S., Latin America, still its "back yard", will continue to share many common positions with the U.S. on several important international issues. But independence and autonomy are expected to keep on growing in Latin American countries' foreign diplomacy.