On March 20, the Council of the Americas hosted a conversation about the future of Brazil-China economic and political relations. China has deepened its ties with the Latin American country through increased efforts in trade and investment, and became Brazil's top trading partner in 2009. Experts discussed the past decade of the relationship, the lack of political action between the countries, and how China-Brazil ties may change in the near future.

Speakers:

• Mauricio Mesquita Moreira, Principal Economist, Trade and Integration Sector, Inter-American Development Bank
• Claudia Trevisan, Correspondent, O Estado de S. Paulo

On March 13, the Council of the Americas and the Bertelsmann Foundation hosted a discussion about the Pacific Alliance with trade experts and the ambassadors from Peru, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, and Costa Rica to the U.S. They also spoke about a new Bertelsmann Foundation report, The Pacific Pumas, which highlights advances and opportunities created by the trade bloc.

Speakers:

• Harold W. Forsyth, Ambassador of Peru to the U.S.
• Eduardo Medina Mora, Ambassador of Mexico to the U.S.
• Luis Carlos Villegas, Ambassador of Colombia to the U.S.
• Mauricio Hurtado, Chargé d'Affaires, Embassy of Chile to the U.S.
• Antoni Estevadeordal, Manager, Integration and Trade Sector, Inter-American Development Bank
• Samuel George, Project Manager, Bertelsmann Foundation
• Annette Heuser, Executive Director, Bertelsmann Foundation (moderator)

COA's Vice President Eric Farnsworth participated in a forum at the New Democrat Network to discuss U.S.-Mexico engagement after President Barack Obama's February trip to Mexico. Farnsworth said that the North American Leaders' Summit was valuable, but "we have to then have implementation" to build a framework for NAFTA to increase trade efficiency and productivity. He also notes that much has changed in the 20 years since NAFTA's creation—including Mexico's economic and technological growth—and the agreement can't be discussed with the same terms used in 1994.

Christopher Sabatini de AS/COA habla con el programa “Choque de Opiniones” de CNN en Español sobre los beneficios y desafíos del Tratado a 20 años de su implementación. NAFTA es un mercado que engloba a 450 millones de habitantes con un PIB de US$41 millones. En el marco de su aniversario, expertos reflexionan sobre el impacto del acuerdo en el flujo comercial y laboral. Para Sabatini, hubo un impacto importante en términos de crecimiento de la inversión regional, la cual se multiplicó cinco veces en las últimas dos décadas. En relación al futuro del libre comercio como arma para el desarrollo, Sabatini subrayó que se deben profundizar los tratados para que haya un mayor acceso a los mercados, aunque advirtió que “el libre comercio es necesario pero no es suficiente”.