Ecuador could leave the four-nation Andean bloc if the group rejects its move to limit imports in response to the global economic crisis, the government said. Ecuador raised tariffs on hundreds of imported products in January, sparking heated complaints by neighbouring Colombia and Peru - two of its partners in the Andean community known as CAN - that charge the protectionist move hurts their exporters.
"If there is a negative position against our country in a decision by the bloc that fails to see the Ecuadorean reality, then our country will have to seriously rethink its future in the CAN," Foreign Minister Fander Falconi was quoted as saying by a state Internet newspaper late on Thursday.
CAN, which also includes Bolivia, is reviewing Ecuadors import restriction. In what is considered one of the worlds toughest import restrictions, Ecuador raised tariffs and set quotas on everything from Chinese shoes to Colombian bubblegum and US clothes.
Ecuadors tough trade move shows growing protectionism around the world as countries battle a spreading global crisis that has seriously hurt their balance of payments. President Rafael Correa, a leftist former economy minister, said he wants to slash imports by $1.5 billion this year to ease a trade balance deficit that could threaten the dollar system as more greenbacks exit the country.