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The factor of trust plays a key role in the development of international
trade relations of a country engaged in world trade. In particular, it
is a matter of trust in the words and commitments made by the respective
governments.
This is even more relevant when it concerns the commitments that a government
undertakes on behalf of its country, within the framework of agreements
concluded with one or more other countries, in order to develop long-term
joint work. In other words, what are traditionally called "economic
integration agreements".
These are commitments intended to influence the investment and trade
decisions of the protagonists of commercial exchange, namely businesses.
Since 1950, when two European countries (Germany and France) embarked
on the path of cooperation that led to the current 27-member European
Union, trust in the rules has played a fundamental role.
Brexit shows the path a country may take when it no longer shares the
idea of cooperation with other European countries. The same thing could
happen if a Mercosur member country were to take the necessary steps to
withdraw from Mercosur.
Moreover, experience shows that the so-called "integration processes"
-or "joint work" between neighboring nations-are not easy to
develop.
This is evidenced by the tensions that usually arise between its member
countries, which can ultimately affect the social and political support
for the agreement within each country. There are examples of this, even
very recent ones, both in Mercosur and in the European Union itself.
They are examples of problems that can even lead to the failure of the
collaborative process in question. And they put to the test the ability
of governments and of the political and business sectors to sustain effectively
the joint work with one or several other countries. This is not always
an easy task.
Nor is it easy to contemplate, in any society, the costs that could result
from the possible failure of a joint work process between neighboring
nations. This is the case of the Mercosur member states, including the
two largest in relative size, namely Argentina and Brazil.
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