Latin American unity urged to counter Trump's divisive wall erection

The Latin American Integration Association (Aladi) on Monday called for stronger regional solidarity to help counter the divisive effects of U.S. President Donald Trump's order of the erection of a border wall with Mexico.

Aladi Secretary General Carlos Alvarez said recent "objections" shown by several Latin American governments to the wall erection were "timely and necessary."

"Any policy that represents an aggression against any of our nations by another country, or as in this case, by an outside power, must be answered with a sense of Latin American belonging and solidarity," Alvarez said in a statement issued out of Montevideo, Uruguay's capital, where Aladi is headquartered.

Alvarez believes "the strongest ... response should be to launch a common political disposition to establish a comprehensive Latin American economic and trade agreement."

The current situation "puts to test" regional countries' willingness to pursue today's "most urgent need for integration," he said.

"A pragmatic, plural and flexible perspective," which takes into account the political differences in the region, suggests that such an agreement seek "the convergence of sub-regional blocs," he added.

Such an agreement could serve as "the foundation to considerably increase intra-regional trade, identify and make the most of our complementarity, and promote partnerships among our companies and productive sectors," said Alvarez.

Bolstering regional integration would in turn serve "to show that we can rise to the challenge" posed by "such threatening circumstances" as Trump's border wall, according to Alvarez. Endi