WASHINGTON, Nov. 29 (UPI) -- Cooperation is heralded as the building block du jour of South American energy security, but doubt persists about the region's ability to make the block itself.

"There's no real substitute for cooperation and integration," Jose Miguel Insulza, secretary-general of the Organization of America States, said at a conference Monday at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.

He conceded, however, that "we hear a lot about integration from our leaders, but then we hear a lot about self-sufficiency" as well.

South American energy integration is not a new concept but remains a primarily theoretical one. Member nations of the South American Community of Nations pledged to strengthen relations "on the basis of the sustainable use of their energy resources and potential … and to move toward South American unity," but their Energy Summit concluded in April 2007 with few tangible results.

Moreover, bickering among South American nations, exemplified most recently by Venezuela's withdrawal of its ambassador to Colombia, persists. Such strife fuels national dreams of self-sufficiency as it depletes trust between governments in the region, according to conference panelists.