MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Bielsa to meet Walker in Montevideo.

After having publicly stated that “it would not be possible to work” with Chilean Foreign Affairs minister Ignacio Walker, Argentine minister Rafael Bielsa finally said that the latest Chilean-Argentine controversy “was over”.

Mr. Bielsa also confirmed that next Monday he will be shaking hands with Mr. Walker in Montevideo, Uruguay, in the framework of a meeting of the Latinamerican Integration Association, ALADI, Foreign Affairs ministers.

"The government to government and country to country situation faces absolutely no inconvenience", underlined Mr. Bielsa when asked about the issue by the Buenos Aires press.

Both the Chilean and Argentine government have been doing their utmost to unravel the diplomatic controversy that erupted following an article written by Mr. Walker last May in El Mercurio where he criticizes both the ruling Peronist party and Argentine president Nestor Kirchner.

In the middle of the energy crisis that struck Chile after Argentina unilaterally decided to restrict gas supplies, Mr. Walker described Peronism as "pseudo fascist" and president Kirchner as a "populist".

So far Mr. Walker and Mr. Bielsa have only communicated by phone and there's great expectation about the coming meeting in ALADI building next Monday.