[20180104]IF10242_欧洲联盟和拉丁美洲.pdf

https:/crsreports.congress.gov Updated January 4, 2018The European Union and Latin AmericaBackground The European Unions (EUs) interest in developing closer relations with the Latin America/Caribbean (LAC) region was formalized in 1990, when the EU held its first summit with the former Rio Group, which became the official forum for the political dialogue between the EU and Latin America (the Rio Group was founded in 1986 by 6 Latin America countries and later expanded to 23). The EU and Rio Group members met approximately every two years at the ministerial level and addressed issues of common interest ranging from trade to human rights to poverty reduction, security, and the narcotics trade. In 1999, in an effort to elevate the importance of EU-LAC relations, the EU-Latin America and Caribbean Summit process was created. These summits, which met in the years between the EU-Rio Group ministerial meetings, brought together the highest-ranking EU officials and the heads of state and government of the LAC region. They introduced additional topics to the dialogue, including climate change, economic and financial issues, research and innovation developments, and energy. In 2010, the Com