MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Moscow claims Argentine politician played 'the Russian card' as presidential elections loom over

Maria Zakharova: “those accusations usually cite official sources in Washington.”

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova Wednesday denounced attempts by several Argentine parliament members to link Moscow to alleged interfering into their country's presidential elections. It was “a last-year trend,” she said, according to the news agency Tass.

Zakharova also admitted that Russia and Argentina are interested in strengthening cooperation “in all spheres,” according to the report.

The Foreign Ministry official did not give specific names, but she underlined that “[w]e noted a statement — rather emotional — by one of Argentine parliament members, who made an attempt to accuse Russia of interfering into the internal affairs of the country ahead of the October 27 election by allegedly supporting an opposition presidential candidate.”

She added that “this is all outdated, that's what I want to tell certain politicians in Argentina. Those are last-year trends. It is now in fashion to cooperate with Russia. If you haven't understood it yet, consider this a hint.”

The Russian Foreign Ministry “noted with satisfaction a healthy reaction to such statements in Argentina, both from government and opposition camps,” she pointed out.

“They noted right away how absurd such accusations are. We can only welcome such a level-headed approach,” Zakharova stressed.

Russia and Argentina are interested in strengthening cooperation in all spheres, she said. She noted that bilateral cooperation “is valuable in itself and is not directed against anyone in Argentina or elsewhere.”

“We want to decisively stress that Argentina is Russia's strategic partner and friend,” Zakharova continued, adding that “developing constructive ties is in the interest of leading political forces and the general public in Argentina.”

The Russian diplomat did not rule out that media reports about alleged Russian interference may indicate that some are not happy with Russian-Argentina strategic cooperation. “It is worthy to note that those accusations usually cite official sources in Washington,” she stressed.

“It is regrettable that playing the Russian card has become an instrument of political technologies. I want to stress once again that such methodology has become obsolete. One should not fall prey to such tricks,” she concluded.

(Source: Tass)