ABSTRACT
The political legitimation of neo-liberal restructuring, and of the political regime that it accompanies, towards civil society depends on the success in transnationalizing the economy. In the case of Mexico, entry into the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been very important in this respect. For Chile, association with the Mercado Común del Sur (Common Market of the South, MERCOSUR) and, possibly later on, entry into NAFTA seems to be the route followed. This chapter studies the regionalization process of both economies and the effects on the nature of the political regime and the relations between state and civil society.
