MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina to protest “Falklands' fishery licensing”

British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Argentine President Nestor Kirchner met for 25 minutes Sunday evening in Surrey and according to Argentine press reports the Falkland Islands and South Atlantic fisheries, were among several issues addressed by the two leaders.

The meeting took place in the framework of the three days Progressive Governance Conference and Reformist Summit in Bagshot organized by the "progressive parties of Europe" that has convened fourteen world leaders aligned in the Labour Party's sponsored Third Way initiative, among which the presidents of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Chile Ricardo Lagos, Germany's Chancellor Gerard Schroeder, Swedish Primer Minister Goran Persson, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien and South African president Thabo Mkebi.

Previous to the meeting President Kirchner and his cabinet chief Mr. Alberto Fernández stressed to the Argentine press covering the event that recovering sovereignty over the Falklands is one of the current administration's main foreign policy objectives as well as curtailing the "excessive number of licences granted by the Falklands government to third parties".

Apparently Argentina will be making a formal diplomatic protest regarding Falklands' fisheries licences.

A few hours before, when the official reception of foreign leaders Prime Minister Blair shook hands with President Kirchner and congratulated him for his April election victory and told the Argentine leader he had been looking forward to meet him.

During the meeting Mr. Kirchner emphasized his background as an elected representative from Patagonia, closely linked to the Malvinas/Falkland Islands and fully aware of "Mr. Galtieri's mad attitudes", recalling that he also had been jailed by the last military dictatorship.

Argentine sources indicate that Mr. Blair listened to the Argentine president arguments and addressed issues of interest to Britain, trade, eliminating poverty, supporting the United States in combating world terrorism. Earlier in the afternoon Prime Minister Blair warned the progressive leaders that "the left would commit a major mistake if it defined itself as anti American", actually it would be playing into the hands of the extreme conservative American right wing.

Mr. Kirchner also presented Prime Minister Tony Blair Argentina's next ambassador before the British government, Federico Mirré, "who fully represents the ideas and goals of this administration".

However according to Latinamerican sources the Progressive Governance conference has been overshadowed by Iraq and the controversy over the pre-war intelligence reports insisting that dictator Saddam Hussein had weapons of massive destruction (still to be found) and developing a nuclear capacity.

Apparently Mr. Blair admitted that the war had generated a 30% opposition in his own ruling Labour party.

Argentina and Latinamerica as a whole have insisted that the Iraq situation should be managed by the United Nations and the Security Council.

Some British press are speculating that the progressive governance conference and its Third Way initiative is also an effort by Prime Minister Blair to regain lost ground and international standing in preparation for a third term.

President Kirchner will be flying this Monday to Brussels to meet with the European Commission president Romano Prodi.