Members of the European Parliament and parliamentarians from Latin America and the Caribbean gathered in Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Spain) from 27 to 29 October for the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly (EuroLat).

The meeting with Conservatives from Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Dominican Republic, and Peru, among others, focused on strengthening cooperation between political forces as an alternative to the left, promoting a common agenda inspired by conservative values, mutually beneficial trade relations, and the fight against crime and illegal immigration.

The ECR MEPs who took part in the delegation include, Nicolas Bay (France), Şerban-Dimitrie Sturdza (Romania), Jessika van Leeuwen (The Netherlands), Mariateresa Vivaldini (Italy) and Nora Junco Garcia (Spain).

At the end of the meeting, the ECR Group delegation made the following statement:

1. Defending freedom, democracy, and security requires a strategic alliance with Latin America. We reaffirm our commitment to continue working together to strengthen international stability and promote social and economic growth, based on a shared political agenda;

2. The extraordinary electoral cycle in Latin America has marked a clear shift to the right. This is an historic opportunity for the continent’s revival. Europe must stand with Latin America and being more present and active in this region.

3. We take note of the outcome of the elections in Brazil and we express our deep concern regarding the independence of the judiciary and the use of the justice system for political ends; we call on the EU to monitor the actual observance of fundamental freedoms and the rule of law in Brazil; we offer Brazil’s conservative forces, which represent the majority in the new parliament, a platform for collaboration to counter the risk of an autocratic drift.

4. We confirm our commitment to achieving freedom and full democracy in Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua;

5. The return to Venezuela of the leader of the democratic opposition, María Corina Machado, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and of the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize, to her country is a powerful moment for Venezuela’s democratic movement and a renewed call for a genuine transition to democracy. We hope this can soon lead to the release of all political prisoners still arbitrarily detained by the regime and to a free and transparent electoral process.

6. The Cuban regime continues to imprison political opponents, silence independent voices and deny its citizens basic freedoms. Europe cannot remain indifferent while the Cuban people suffer under a dictatorship that has failed politically, economically and morally. We fully support the Freedom Accord, a democratic transition roadmap backed by Cuban opposition groups and civil society activists; the ECR Group reiterated its call for the suspension and eventual termination of the EU-Cuba Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement;

7. We express great appreciation for the work carried out and the results achieved by Presidents Milei, Noboa, Peña, and Bukele, particularly regarding economic revitalization and security; this reflects the same positive path of renewal undertaken by Presidents Kast and De la Espriella;

8. We call upon the EU and the international community to support President Rodrigo Paz, who, after twenty years of governance by the Movement for Socialism (MAS), has restored democracy and economic stability to Bolivia; we look with confidence toward the new President of Peru, Keiko Fujimori, hoping that she may bring stability to a country that has seen eight presidents in the last ten years;

9. Recent trade agreements between the EU and Latin American countries represent significant opportunities, but they must be accompanied by the concrete application of the principle of reciprocity and safeguards to avoid unfair competition for our agricultural producers;

10. Security, the fight against drug trafficking, and the issue of illegal immigration are shared challenges, and we wish to foster greater bi-regional cooperation in these areas;

11. We consider cooperation in the fields of energy and raw materials to be a priority; we call on the EU to shift its approach and focus its resources and flagship initiatives (starting with the Global Gateway) on a few projects capable of delivering a real, tangible impact; efforts to counter China’s growing presence in the region must be strengthened.