MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Open letter to Argentines from new UK ambassador

Ambassador Shan Morgan

The new British ambassador in Argentina presented her credentials on Wednesday to Foreign Affairs minister Jorge Taiana and simultaneously published an open letter in the embassy's site saying how privileged she was to be in Buenos Aires underscoring the many coincidences between UK and Argentina. Her message included an implicit message on Falklands “there are differences of policy and opinion between the UK and Argentina on some important matters”.

"As a British diplomat, I feel privileged to be posted to Argentina. Over and above the natural beauty of the country, there is the vibrant culture and the fascinating development of cutting edge activities like design and software. I know that colleagues in London are very envious of my posting to such an exciting and cosmopolitan city" writes Ambassador Shan Morgan who is also non resident ambassador to Paraguay. Further on she said that "of course there are differences of policy and opinion between the UK and Argentina on some important matters. But I believe there are many interests and challenges that we share, and on which I hope we can work together productively". "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be my first and constant point of contact here in Argentina. But I look forward to working with all sectors of Argentine society in pursuit of our common goals, and – like a growing number of British people - to visiting the different regions of this beautiful country". The letter follows:"As a British diplomat, I feel privileged to be posted to Argentina. Over and above the natural beauty of the country, there is the vibrant culture and the fascinating development of cutting edge activities like design and software. I know that colleagues in London are very envious of my posting to such an exciting and cosmopolitan city. My key task here is to represent the interests of my country and to strengthen co-operation between the UK and Argentina across a broad range of bilateral and global issues. This means working closely with colleagues in Argentina to tackle the many common challenges facing us - in areas like Human Rights, Climate Change, Peacekeeping and Counter-proliferation. Promoting mutually beneficial trade and investment is also a top priority for me – building on a long history of British trade and investment in Argentina. Of course there are differences of policy and opinion between the UK and Argentina on some important matters. But I believe there are many interests and challenges that we share, and on which I hope we can work together productively. The UK shares Argentina's deep commitment to the protection of human rights. We work together closely in the UN Human Rights Council, for example co-sponsoring a recent resolution condemning the human rights violations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We also support human rights work in Argentina .The British Embassy is funding a three year 100,000 pound (U$S 150,000) project to support the Argentine government in implementing independent monitoring of detention places. We are also very proud of our contribution to the invaluable work of the Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo As for counter-proliferation, both our countries are trying to secure an Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) to establish global standards for the trade in arms, thus cutting the supply of weapons to illicit traffickers, protecting the vulnerable and saving lives. The UK and Argentina were two of the authors of the original December 2006 United Nations (UN) Resolution calling for work towards an Arms Trade Treaty. We again acted together to secure a UN First Committee Resolution in October 2008 calling for further work on a Treaty in 2009. Next year our governments will seek to push forward this work, both in the UN and in the Latin American region, to make a new Treaty a reality. Another challenge we have in common is the serious threat to human welfare, the environment and the global economy posed by Climate Change. The UK has a strong commitment to action to tackle climate change - our Government has just announced a commitment to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050. There is much we can do bilaterally to share experience and understanding not just of the threats, but also the opportunities presented by climate change. But a global solution to climate change is essential. Argentina has taken a lead in complying with the Kyoto protocol. 2009 will be a key year as world leaders prepare for the UN summit in Copenhagen. We will work to underline the importance of this issue and enhance the understanding of the respective positions of the UK and Argentina – it is in both our countries' interests that an ambitious international agreement is reached. On the trade and investment front, our countries have a long tradition of working together. Trade between both countries is at a record level, with aggregate trade totalling £ 800 million (U$S 1,200 million). Seventy UK companies operate in Argentina. Some have been in operation for decades. New companies in new fields are also active in the market - recent examples include carbon trading, biotechnology and advertising. Diplomacy and international co-operation is no longer the sole realm of governments and diplomats. Obviously, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be my first and constant point of contact here in Argentina. But I look forward to working with all sectors of Argentine society in pursuit of our common goals, and – like a growing number of British people - to visiting the different regions of this beautiful country".