Resumen

BOTTO, Mercedes. América del Sur y la integración regional: ¿Quo vadis? Los alcances de la cooperación regional en el MERCOSUR. CONfines relacion. internaci. ciencia política [online]. 2015, vol.11, n.21, pp.9-38. ISSN 1870-3569.

This article intends to analyze the progress and limits of regional integration in South America. It compares regional policies, focusing in the process of institutional-building processes, because, as well noted by the theories of regional integration, delegation of authority by National Governments is a sine-quanon condition for integration. The conclusion is that it is more appropriate to speak of political cooperation and technical coordination among countries that regional integration, since there are no structural conditions or Agency (political will) that secure the binding implementation of commitments at the national level in this part of the American continent. This result forces us to be cautious when talking about the UNASUR as a point of rupture and deepening regional pattern, as it predicts much of the literature about the existence of a third wave of regional integration in South America.

Palabras llave : Theories of integration; regional policies; regional institutions; MERCOSUR y UNASUR.