Mexico’s President Felipe Calderón was at the steering wheel while Federal Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle sat in the passenger seat: the joint test drive in the redesigned New Beetle model at the Volkswagen plant in Puebla was a magnificent expression of the good relations and close economic cooperation between the two countries. During his visit in mid-July 2011, the Federal Foreign Minister was not only concerned with expanding economic relations in his discussions with the Mexican President and Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa. The subjects of organized crime, disarmament and climate protection were also on the agenda.
Westerwelle said he was pleased to be a guest in “such an important, up-and-coming country” that was acquiring increasing global political significance. He also made stops in Colombia and Haiti. In Haiti he gained a picture of the situation after the serious earthquake. It was already Westerwelle’s second major visit to Latin America as Federal Foreign Minister. The visit was therefore an expression of the new dynamism with which Germany is pursuing bilateral relations with Latin America and the Caribbean.
On 4 August 2010, the flags of all 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean surrounded the podium in the Weltsaal at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin – as if the countries of the continent had been invited to a state reception in the German capital. More than 400 guests from the fields of politics, business, education and research came. Federal Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle presented the new government strategy for Latin America and the Caribbean. The 64-page document that the Federal Foreign Office had drafted in close coordination with other ministries and nongovernmental organizations is the first major overall strategy for the entire region since 1995. The document covers broad areas of bilateral relations, ranging from politics, business and development cooperation to education and research as well as environmental and climate protection. The clear message of the strategy is that Germany must become more actively involved in Latin America in the future and make better use of the potential of these relations. Federal Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said at the presentation that the political and economic significance of this dynamic region with more than 500 million inhabitants was frequently underestimated. “The whole continent is on the rise. We must be smart enough to be there as this success story unfolds.”
Westerwelle had already visited several countries in the region – Chile, Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay – during his first major journey abroad as Federal Foreign Minister in March 2010. Among others, he met with the presidents of Brazil and Uruguay as well as Argentina’s President Cristina Kirchner. The journey also assisted the preparation for drawing up the new Latin America strategy.
During its presentation in Berlin in August 2010, Westerwelle emphasized shared political values and interests with the countries of Latin America that form a solid and dependable foundation for cooperation. He said that it had already become evident in the past that Latin American countries were important partners for Germany on important international issues such as disarmament policy, reform of the United Nations Security Council and climate protection. After the first chapter, which focuses on political topics such as democracy, the rule of law and human rights as well as questions of peace and security, the strategy takes a detailed look at economic relations. Latin America continues to be an important production centre and growing sales market for German companies – despite increasing international competition above all from Asia. The Brazilian metropolis of São Paulo, for example, is the largest German industrial city outside the European Union and the USA. Enormous opportunities for economic cooperation are now opening up in Brazil, said Westerwelle, especially as a result of two large sporting events – the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games.
The strategy also relies on cultural and scientific cooperation to achieve its goal of further strengthening and expanding relations with Latin America and the Caribbean. Qualified school-leavers who attended institutions that belong to the Schools: Partners for the Future (PASCH) network, especially graduates of German schools abroad are increasingly to be attracted to study at German universities and colleges. The German-Brazilian Year of Science, Technology and Innovation 2010/2011 was recently able to set new priorities in education and research. And Germany Year in Brazil will attract attention in the region in 2013/2014.
