President Piñera opened the South American Presidents' Summit: "We want this forum to have a strong and clear commitment to the principles of freedom, democracy and human rights"
Accompanied by 10 regional leaders, the President of Chile opened the meeting, which is intended to be an ideology-free space for regional integration with a flexible structure that facilitates understanding in South America.
On Friday, President Sebastián Piñera inaugurated the South American Presidents' Summit, which seeks to promote development, cooperation and coordination in the region, as well as to address challenges and identify opportunities for regional integration.
"Five years have passed since South America’s Presidents and their representatives last met, and I think it is both vital and urgent for us to create this opportunity to discuss and coordinate, as well as to find ways of collaborating with each other and promote the integration and development of our countries," said the President. He was addressing the plenary session of the summit, which took place in the Patio de los Naranjos in La Moneda Palace.
President Piñera also highlighted the regional commitment to democracy and progress: "We want this to be a forum without ideologies and without bureaucracy, and we want it to be a forum for frank and direct dialogue, but we also want this forum to have a strong and clear commitment to the principles of freedom, democracy and respect for human rights. Those are not ideology, but values and principles," said the President of Chile.
The summit was attended by the Presidents of Colombia, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Argentina and Paraguay, as well as representatives from Bolivia, Uruguay, Suriname and Guyana.
President Piñera made the announcement in February that this meeting was to be held to promote dialogue and strengthen economic, commercial and political integration.