Minister Ampuero presents book on Chile's multilateral vocation for foreign policy

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Roberto Ampuero, participated today in the presentation of the book "Chile, an actor in the multilateral system. A national tradition", by the Diplomatic Academy of Chile "Andrés Bello", in conjunction with the Iberoamerican General Secretariat, and edited by Juan Somavía and Pedro Oyarce.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs stressed in his speech that adherence to multilateralism is a central dimension of Chilean foreign policy. "It is part of a republican tradition that constantly seeks to project and protect our interests based on our realities and conditions. This has been a key element in our international integration," he said, adding that the country "prioritizes multilateral action to reaffirm and give continuity to the principles, objectives and values that guide it and thus take on board the changes to respond to our strategic priorities".

As an example, he highlighted the concrete contributions made by Chile to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to the search for and strengthening of democracy and the search for freedom. "We have contributed to the recognition that this area is a legitimate concern of the international community. Chile's commitments and pronouncements have been made with conviction, especially in the inter-American sphere, in the face of ethical imperatives and civilizing values that do not admit relativization and cannot be described as interventionism," he said.

In turn, he said that regional multilateralism has been a constant of Chilean foreign policy. "We belong to a community of similar origins, with shared values that we need to take care of. That is where we want to develop political and economic processes and project a common cultural heritage," he said.

In this regard, he highlighted the role that the Pacific Alliance can play as an efficient, open and dialoguing integration project, stressing that this already aroused the interest of fifty observing countries.

Finally, he concluded that the document presented "is a contribution to the knowledge and dissemination of the path that Chile has travelled as an actor in the multilateral system at different times in its history. It also responds to the responsibility of training those who will speak for Chile in a world where we need to have a presence and be protagonists".

The presentation of the book, held in the O'Higgins Hall of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was attended by ambassadors, diplomats, members of the Armed Forces and academics. The text, edited by Juan Somavía and Pedro Oyarce, contains the reflections and testimonies of 35 authors on the role that Chile has played in the consolidation of the international system at different times in its history. The authors include Fernando Zegers, Benito Baranda, María Teresa Infante, Hugo Dolmestch, José Miguel Insulza, Manfred Wilhelmy, Belén Sapag, Mario Matus, Alejandro Jara and Carlos Fortín.