TARIJA, Bolivia (AP):

The first presidents to arrive on the eve of yesterday's Community of Andean Nations summit called for South American unity, brushing off the trade bloc's recent internal spats over how best to approach a European trade deal.

The CAN's four full members - Bolivia, Colombia, Peru and Ecuador -and associate member Chile, will meetbriefly in this southern Bolivian city to hammer out their stance on a long-term trade pact with the European Union.

"We are here to continue on the path to integration, an unavoidable path, an irreversible path," Correa said upon arriving at the small Tarija airport on Wednesday. "Our common past obliges us to seek a common destiny."

But the bloc remains deeply divided over the best way to open the region to greater international commerce. Peruvian President Alan Garcia and Colombian President Alvaro Uribe have both signed free trade agreements with the United States.

Bolivian President Evo Morales has vehemently rejected such a deal, while his Ecuadorean ally, President Rafael Correa, has expressed doubts about free trade agreements.