Interview: Mercosur presidency impasse may affect trade deals within bloc

The rejection of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay to Venezuela's rotating presidency of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) may affect trade agreements within the bloc, said a Venezuelan deputy to the Latin American Parliament.

The situation is expected to put trade agreements within the five-member South American trade bloc at the risk of being suspended, Carolus Wimmer told Xinhua in a recent interview.

"These treaties could be paralyzed, to the disadvantage of their own peoples," warned the deputy from the Communist Party of Venezuela.

"This implies a paralysis of the internal market, investments, loans and...integration," Wimmer said earlier this week, after a meeting by Mercosur representatives from the three countries and Uruguay failed to work out a solution.

"We believe it is fair for Venezuela to assume the rotating presidency of Mercosur which, as is well-known, is determined by alphabetical order and not by a majority vote," Wimmer said.

"These three governments are humiliating themselves by playing U.S. police, which seeks to isolate Venezuela and foment a coup against the government of President Nicolas Maduro," said Wimmer.

Wimmer said he believes that their move will benefit Mercosur's rival sub-regional trade bloc the Pacific Alliance, which is comprised of Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Peru.

Mercosur has been divided since late July. Venezuela was scheduled to take over the bloc's rotating presidency from Uruguay on Aug. 1, but Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay think its economic crisis and political problems at home make it unfit to assume the leadership.

Venezuela and Uruguay, however, have insisted that the existing order of rotation should be respected. Endi