(15 Dec 2008) SHOTLIST
1. Wide of tank and soldiers at checkpoint
2. Various of soldier on tank at checkpoint
3. Back shot of soldier at check point
4. Wide of tank and soldiers
5. Wide of check point with sign reading (Portuguese): "Welcome to Costa de Sauipe"
6. Mid of soldier at check point
7. Pull out from sign reading "Costa de Sauipe" to exterior of press centre building
8. Soldier at scene
9. Officials outside building
10. Pan from reporters to Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim at news conference
11. Reporter taking notes
12. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Celso Amorim, Brazilian Foreign Minister:
"Mercosur nations and Venezuela will try to absorb the Bolivian imports that used to be directed to the United States through the Andean Trade Program. This means that these products will receive a reduction in fees, which Brazil had not been charging for years, and we will work with similar clauses like those that existed in the original Andean Trade Program."
13. Amorim listening to reporter's question
14. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Celso Amorim, Brazilian Foreign Minister:
"It is great to see that we could deal with our problems, despite being considered developing nations. This is a historic time for us and it shows that Latin America and the Caribbean are entering a great age of maturity."
15. Wide of news conference
STORYLINE
A top Brazilian official said on Monday that Mercosur nations failed to agree on ending a double tariff on goods imported from outside the trade bloc.
Brazil's Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said the double tariff impeded negotiations with other trade blocs.
Amorim spoke on Monday as Latin American leaders were gathering at a resort in northeast Brazil in an attempt to tighten regional economic and political integration.
Mercosur members pay one tariff when they import goods from non-members and another when the goods are exported within the bloc.
Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay are members of Mercosur and the issue is specially relevant for Paraguay, the only member without sea ports who normally imports most of the goods through Brazil and Argentina.
Associated countries to the Mercosur, who only has four official members, are also present at the summit.
The presidents of Guyana, Surinam, Cuba and Mexico, neither members nor associated members, have also been invited.
Questioned about Bolivia's situation, who is no longer included in the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA) and the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA) promoted by the US, the Brazilian Foreign Minister said the Mercosur members and Venezuela had agreed to work together and try to absorb the Bolivian exports.
Brazil will host other major summits this week, the most important is that of CALC or Latin American and Caribbean.
The CALC summit will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday and 33 countries will assist to discuss a common approach to tackle the financial, energetic and food crisis.
A UNASUR, Union of South American Nations, meeting and a Group of Rio meeting will also take place in the Costa de Sauipe resort in Bahia.
Amorim spoke highly of the summits and said they were good forums to solve the region's problems and proved the maturity of Latin American countries.
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