Venezuala will become full member of Mercosur
Mercosur announced that Venezuela will become its fifth full member from 31 July.
The decision was released following the suspension of Paraguay, strongly opposing to Venezuela’s membership.
The Latin American bloc also announced that will not apply further economic sanctions to Paraguay. In fact, Paraguay is one of South America's poorest countries and any economic sanction by the bloc would have been disastrous, since half its trade is with fellow Mercosur founding members, Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay.
Paraguay was suspended from Mercosur for having impeached and ousted President Fernando Lugo. The new president, Federico Franco, was barred from attending the Mercosur presidential summit in Mendoza on 26 and 27 June.
The Union of South American Nations, or UNASUR, also suspended Paraguay during an emergency meeting Friday 29 June and handed the pro-tempore presidency to Peru for 12 months. The regional grouping said Fernando Lugo was not allowed a proper defense.
Francesca Ghersenti, International Democracy Watch. 04 July 2012.