On 8 December 2005, the Dominican Republic and MERCOSUR trading bloc (composed of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) met in Montevideo, Uruguay on the occasion of the XXIX meeting of the MERCOSUR Common Market Council and Summit of Heads of State. At this meeting, the Parties signed a Joint Statement with the objective to continue deepening the political and economic dialogue between MERCOSUR and the Dominican Republic. Discussions were slated to begin in 2006.

In their Communication, the Heads of State of the MERCOSUR member countries expressed satisfaction at the adoption of a work program between the Dominican Republic and MERCOSUR leading towards the negotiation of a free trade agreement.

Documents relating to the negotiations
09 December 2005	Joint Communiqué of the Presidents of the Parties of MERCOSUR
08 December 2005	Dominican Republic and MERCOSUR sign document with intent to negotiate future free trade agreement
08 December 2005	Montevideo, Uruguay. MERCOSUR-Dominican Republic Joint Statement
Source: Presidencia de la República Oriental del Uruguay; Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana (SICA)

• Presidencia de la República Oriental de Uruguay
• Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana (SICA)