MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentine top minister in Washington attending the 'ideologically bias” IMF assembly

While in Buenos Aires Capitanich launched a scathing attack, Kicillof was scheduled for a round of contacts

In a strong reply to the IMF report on the Argentine economy forecasting 0.5% expansion in 2014, the administration of President Cristina Fernandez said the multilateral organization suffers of an 'ideological bias' and its recipes only prompted the 'worst social and productive crisis in the history of Argentina'.

 But precisely at the moment of these statements the Cristina Fernandez administration Economy minister and architect of the current policy, Axel Kicillof was flying to Washington for the IMF/World Bank assembly where he is scheduled to meet the organizations' top officials.

In his daily brief to the press, cabinet chief Jorge Capitanich on Wednesday blasted the IMF report that foresees a steep deceleration of Argentina’s economic activity for this year in a context of “high uncertainty”, insisting of the “ideological bias” of its analysis.

“Fortunately, ex president Néstor Kirchner made a decision and that was to have autonomy in economic decisions,” Capitanich underlined alluding to the decision made by late husband of now president Cristina Fernández, who defied the IMF, refused to accept its debt conditions and when possible paid to the last cent it owed the Washington based organization.

“We owe not a dollar to the IMF and it cannot condition the sovereign managing of Argentina's economic policy anymore,” Capitanich warned and accused the credit organization of “recommendations that caused Argentina’s worst economic, social, fiscal and financial crisis” in reference to the 2001-2002 social outburst and record sovereign default on 95bn of sovereign debt.

Argentina's sustained growth with social inclusion, job creation and improving income distribution was achieved “precisely because we did not follow the recommendations from the IMF”, and its latest economic outlook report differs “significantly from the Inter American Development and other analysts reports”.

The IMF outlook report compares Argentina with Venezuela and warns about the increase of inflation, currency devaluation, the slowing of the economy in a context of “high uncertainty”.

Likewise Capitanich complained that the IMF's main task which should have been to support and lead the voluntary restructuring process of the Argentine debt, “has come to nothing because it has yielded to international bankers, hedge funds and the global financial system”.

The cabinet chief recalled that the litigating 'vulture funds' that are not original holders of Argentine debt are but 1% of the 7% of holdouts that did not adhere to the debt swaps proposed by Argentina, which was accepted by 93% of bond holders. “That is where the IMF should have been, defending restructuring, but it never did so”.

Capitanich again went back to the IMF/Argentina historic relation and recalled how an Argentine leader several decades ago described the IMF, “those who promise unbeatable springs that never arrive, and implacable winters that never fail”. He added that is what the IMF has meant for Argentina.

But the real news is that the scathing attack coincides with Economy minister Kicillof trip to Washington to attend the IMF/World Bank assembly to meet with the heads of those organizations and potential private investors as part of the Cristina Fernandez administration new policy of building bridges with these organizations and corporations.

Argentina is also in the midst negotiations with the Paris Club to refinance a long standing defaulted debt estimated close to 10bn dollars and at some point will need the support or compliance from the IMF.