MERCOSUR & Alianza del Pacífico - challanges and potential of integration in Latin America

Latin America, at the moment, is not the main focus point of international politics. However, its situation makes it a potentially economically and politically interesting region, because it lies in the proximity of USA, has ties to East Asia and is historically and culturally linked to Europe. In order to make their mark in the world system, Latin American nations integrate into various blocs. The most prominent blocs right now are longstanding MERCOSUR and new dynamic Alianza del Pacífico. The main aim of this thesis is to evaluate strengths and weaknesses and identify potential threats and opportunities of/for MERCOSUR and AP in the context of Latin-American integration