Glossary: Rio Group
DEFINITION:
A permanent mechanism for consultation and political coordination that succeeded the Contadora Support Group in December 1986. It consisted of Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Its second meeting, attended by the presidents of seven member-countries (Panama’s membership was temporarily suspended in February 1988), was held in Punta del Este, Uruguay, in October 1988. Like the Contadora Support Group, the Group of Eight advocated democracy and a negotiated solution to the Central American insurgencies. Its name was changed in 1990 to the Group of Rio, which had eleven members in 1993. In addition to Chile, other members include Bolivia, Ecuador, and Paraguay. Its seventh summit was held in Santiago on October 15-16, 1993.