"On Saturday, January 17, Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz attended the signing of a free trade agreement between the European Union and the South American bloc in Asuncion. In his speech, he emphasised that Bolivia's accession to Mercosur could lead to a brighter future for the country. "I, as president of Bolivia, but also as a Bolivian, together with Mercosur, will not abandon Bolivia nor much less Mercosur to build a better future for our peoples," Paz said. He further accused that during the MAS (Movement for Socialism) government, authorities went so far as to 'isolate us from the world' and failed to shape 'a vision of construction together with other nations (...) in something as important as the condition of being part of Mercosur.' "Now our first will is to break the confinement that we were subjected to over the last 20 years," Paz added. The Bolivian president also said that 'we will soon join' and recalled that in 2024 he was one of the senators who 'fought for the Mercosur law to be approved'. He also promised that 'now as president I will make every effort to be fully integrated'. In 2024, Bolivia's senate approved a protocol for the country's accession to Mercosur and sent it to then-President Luis Arce, who enacted the law, stating that the incorporation would turn them into an 'articulating axis of the region'. At the time, it was reported that Bolivia had a maximum of four years to adapt its legislation to that of Mercosur, mainly its tariff policy, and thus complete its accession process. Current leader Paz promises greater speed in integration. The agreement between Mercosur and the European Union was signed after more than two decades of negotiations and creates one of the largest free trade zones in the world, encompassing more than 700 million people and nearly 20 per cent of global Gross Domestic Product. The agreement still needs to be approved by all European Union member states and ratified by the Mercosur countries, a process that could take several months before it comes into force."