Since its return to democracy in 1990, Chile has been an active participant in the international political arena. Chile assumed a 2-year non-permanent position on the UN Security Council in January and is an active member of the UN family of agencies, serving as a member of the Commission on Human Rights and participating in UN peacekeeping activities. Chile hosted the second Summit of the Americas in 1998, was the chair of the Rio Group in 2001, and hosted the Defense Ministerial of the Americas in 2002. Looking ahead, Santiago will host the APEC summit and related meetings in 2004 and the Community of Democracies ministerial in 2005. An associate member of Mercosur and a full member of APEC, Chile and has been a leading advocate on international economic issues and hemispheric free trade.

The Chilean Government has diplomatic relations with most countries and has settled nearly all of its territorial disputes, most notably with Argentina during the 1990s. Chile and Bolivia severed diplomatic ties in 1978 over Bolivia's desire to reacquire territory it lost to Chile in 1879-83 War of the Pacific. The two countries maintain consular relations.