The victory in the Chilean presidential elections of the socialist, Mr Ricardo Lagos, on Sunday has brought about such symmetry in the political philosophies of some of South America's leaders that politicians and political analysts are already trumpeting a historic opportunity to build economic and cultural bridges in the southern portion of Latin America.
"The election of Ricardo Lagos is going to mean a strong consolidation of the [South American trading bloc] Mercosur," said the Chilean Foreign Minister, Mr Juan Gabriel Valdes.
"This is the news that both [the Brazilian President] Fernando Henrique Cardoso and [Argentine President] Fernando de la Rua have been awaiting all week. Lagos's administration will be a government that consolidates its integration with Latin America and emphasises the macroeconomic co-ordination of the Southern Cone.
"Without a question, Brazil, Argentina and Chile are the three countries that have moved farthest in market reform, consolidation of democracy and respect for civil liberties," said Mr Andres Velasco, director of the Latin American studies department at New York University.
"As Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela are having tremendously difficult times, it is good to have solid examples in the south."
Mr Velasco stressed that the biographies of the leaders of Brazil, Argentina and Chile provided an opportunity to take political reform beyond merely market and financial reform. Because each country was now ruled by a politician in his 60s, with extensive connections with grass-roots organisations, Mr Velasco said, the three countries served as both a symbol of Latin American unity and a powerful example for other countries in the region seeking economic and political stability.
"Lagos is part of a new generation of politician that we are seeing in Latin America. These are politicians who have a commitment to social issues, but who have also accepted the open market," said Ms Karen Poniachik, with the New York-based Council of the Americas. "The days of the paternalistic state or individualistic state are over. Now we are entering an era of fraternal co-operation."
Not since the mid-1970s have the three economic powers of the south been so aligned - and that time the alliance was one of terror and torture. It is those difficult years that have been the basis for the long-term friendship that exists among the three.
"Clearly, you have three leaders who come from a similar space in the political spectrum. And Cardoso and Lagos, in particular, share a common story," said Mr Nelson Cunningham from the consulting firm Kissinger McLarty. "They were both exiled, both professors, and both moved from the left to the centre over the course of their careers."
"This could be the impetus to more integration in the Southern Cone and more generally in Latin America," said Mr Jorge Heine, a former Chilean cabinet minister. "Ricardo Lagos has a very strong commitment to the region and that is destined to be one of the strengths of his government."