Hydropower of MERCOSUR member countries: the role of Latin American regionalism in the context of the transformation of the world order

The report focuses on the study of the hydropower sector's role as a crucial component in the energy mix of South American countries, and its impact on the modern development of integration within MERCOSUR and the transregional cooperation among its member states. It also examines the influence of economic ties with external actors such as the United States, European Union, China, and Russia on regionalization dynamics.

The relevance of this study stems from, on the one hand, the increasing importance of energy cooperation between MERCOSUR member states and Russia and China. On the other hand, the changing foreign policy context in the development of regionalism in Latin America in the 2020s significantly impacts interstate relations within MERCOSUR. Argentine-Uruguayan tensions, changes in Brazilian-Paraguayan relations, and the alignment with Bolivia are all influenced by external factors at various levels, necessitating an adjustment to Moscow's Latin American economic diplomacy strategy.

The scientific novelty of this report is justified by the lack of attention given to these issues in the existing scientific literature. While domestic and foreign authors focus their research on economic, environmental, and political aspects of hydroelectric power development in South America, the interdependence between this development and South American regionalism remains understudied among Latin American scholars.

This research adopts a systematic approach based on the concepts of regionalism and regionalization, employing statistical data analysis and comparative methods. The choice of these approaches is rooted in the complex political, economic, and socio-economic nature of the topic, as well as the need for an in-depth examination of the issues despite the intricate interplay between internal and external factors.

As a result, the author comes to contradictory conclusions. On the one hand, the objective prerequisites and logic of hydropower development in South America contribute greatly to the integration process in the region. However, on the other hand, the aggravation of geoeconomic confrontation pose a direct threat to sustainable development of the energy sector in MERCOSUR. At the same time, the article emphasizes that there are opportunities for further cooperation in the hydropower sector between the countries of the region and Russia, in case political barriers are overcome.