MEXICO CITY (Sputnik) – On Thursday, Argentina’s Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra announced that Buenos Aires will preside over Mercosur starting next year, adding that there will be no traditional presidential summit.
"Chancellor Susana Malcorra said that Mercosur will get no Summit of Presidents. It is the same Chancellor who did not recognize the transfer of Mercosur [presidency] because there was no Summit of Presidents. The cynicism is infinite, she has a short memory," Delcy Rodriguez commented on the decision on Twitter.
Rodriguez also thanked the Broad Front center-left coalition of Uruguay for supporting and expressing solidarity with Venezuela on the Mercosur issue.
Venezuela was officially notified of having its membership in Mercosur suspended earlier this month. However, Malcorra stressed in her address that Venezuela has not been suspended from the bloc, but that there is a "cessation of its participation in Mercosur."
Mercosur presidency for this half of the year was supposed to be transferred to Venezuela, after Uruguay officially ended its chairmanship in July. However, there have been concerns over growing discord in Venezuela amid a political standoff between Maduro and the opposition-dominated parliament.
Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay eventually decided to temporarily share the presidency of the bloc.
